It is still the Norm in Arabia. Even though the Muslim religion has flourished over there it has failed to unite anyone, it is like Lawrence of Arabia.....too much bickering by tribal leaders. The Shi-ites, the Sunnis, the Kurds, the Palastinians, the Jews...etc..etc..etc..etc.... Nothing has changed, just the technology of blowing people up has improved. DD
Yes, the Abbasid, Fatimid, Safavid, Seljuk, Mamluk, Umayyad, and Ottoman dynasties never spanned the globe.
When was that again? And how did they span the globe exactly, was it a peaceful conquering. Careful over there Cabbage, you are slipping on that slope !!! DD
Completely irrelevant to the discussion at hand. Everyone knows that the Arab world has been in shambles since the fall of the Ottomans. The discussion at hand was in regards to Islamic history. You made a statement that Islam has failed to unite anyone which is completely false. This is so ridiculous. What great empire came to power peacefully in world history? Why is Islam held to different standards? Furthermore, they didn't go start wars with everyone and then enslave the women and children such as was the norm. Jews and Christians lived in better conditions under Muslim rule than otherwise. 'Dhimmis' paying jizya, equatable to the same 2% savings tax that Muslims were required to pay, held the same rights in the state that Muslims did and were protected by the state.
Of course it is ridiculous but it proves my point that there has been no uniting going on in the Arab world, for like...forever ! DD
But I wouldn't say the Christians have had a better history of uniter-ing either. If someone read this, wouldn't their response boil down to context and what's already been said in this topic?
The topic was broached originally in this thread in regards to Islamic history pre-dating back to Muhammad. You then said 'Even though the Muslim religion has flourished over there it has failed to unite anyone' which is an all-encompassing, absolute statement regarding Islamic history in Arabia. You now seem to be qualifying that statement after being proven wrong. Well duh, everyone knows the Arabs aren't united in present day!
Cabbage, Arabs have never been united, conquered, yes, but never united, it has always broken down to tribal clashes. Until the standard of living for the common man & woman over there rises above the poverty level, that is all we will ever see. As for Christianity uniting - heck no....same as the Islamic faith. Religion does not unite, it divides. Ironically after I posted my last bit about the Arab world not uniting, it got me chuckling thinking that GW has done more to unite them than anything else lately, and that is just sad. And Islam does not predate Muhamed, does it? I thought he started the religion in the 700s or so. DD
I see this women speaking with such passion and humility about her culture. She's criticizing it and angry because she see's the illusion and excuses many Muslims live under and the truths they deny. Her words are falling on deaf ears, but tips to Al Jazzera for letting her speak.
Azadre, I actually don't hate any religion, what I find disgusting is man's manipulation of the afterlife to corrupt the minds of people into doing despicable things. IMHO, religions have come and gone, Summarians, Babylonians, Romans, Greeks etc, all attempting to explain or comprehend man's place in the universe, when in fact, we can not even understand the universe itself. There is nothing wrong with trying to define our place, or to seek out where we lie in the grand scheme of things. However, all attempts to define GOD etc have been written by man, and it frustrates me that people take it as an absolute, when in fact the books were all written by ORDINARY people with an agenda based upon their standing at that particular time. It is fascinating to me that people look to scriptures written over 1000 years ago for their faith and guidance. People back then lived in squalor, had diseases which we have conquered, and wrote scripture to control the ignorant masses of the day. What better way to stop premarital sex than by saying "You will be eternally damned" or "Pigs meat is filthy" when in fact it isn't but at the time could have carried diseases. The problem with most religions is that they have failed to adopt to the new discoveries of the last 1000 years, and thus are antiquated, out of date, and in most cases, just plain silly. In no way can you convince me that Jesus Christ walked on water, or turned water into wine, or that Moses parted the Red Sea. Nor is the meteorite at Mecca anything more than just a rock fallen from the sky. These teachings were written by ignorant men (with an agenda) and in most cases 100s of years after the actual fact, and many writtings or teaching were left out because they did not fit the edict of the clergy at that time. And in most cases all religions are highly contradictory. An eye for an eye, or turn the other cheek? They various religious books (Bible, Quran, Torah etc) are meant as stories of morality, and as such are valuable tools. However, IMHO, they are far from factual and cause more division than uniting. The old " I AM MORE RIGHT THAN YOU " argument about something which can not be clearly defined, it is completely laughable, and downright silly. I believe in GOD, and a creator, I do NOT believe that any of the religions today are any closer to God than any of the vanquished religions that have gone before. Everyone & I mean EVERYONE is simply guessing and in the meantime many religious people are corrupting people's minds into doing unthinkable acts. (Jim Jones, David Koresh, Osama Bin Laden, the Mullahs in Iran) There is no excuses for what is going on in the world today, and the fact that it all stems from people arguing about words written by FRICKEN GOAT herders 1000s of years ago is laughable at best. DD
A very relevant post, however one would argue that all relgions have that "We are more right than you" attitude, at least the major ones do. DD
I'd love to see how one would rank them in terms of self-righteousness and then, afterwards, reveal which religion they subscribe to or were raised under.
Whoops - can't forget that. Maybe I will drop it all together, got to change with the times you know. Sounds like a poll. DD
Umm...she's not a Muslim, she clearly stated so in the segment. She is speaking from the POV of a non-Muslim. "Her culture" is not Islam. She was excusing the actions of anyone except Muslims. She made out-of-context references to the Hadith and Quran that had absolutley nothing to do with what she was talking about, then she takes a jab at Islamic civilization saying that it contributed nothing to humanity...how can I take this lady seriously when she is so blinded and one-sided in her argument?
