" Fight the Christians"

Let me start by appologizing for the title, it was merely to draw your attention, and i never meant it.

The Arabic word ‘Jihad’ means “strive” or “effort”. Essentially Jihad is an effort to practice religion in the face of oppression and persecution. It can be striving to fight the evil in ones heart or it can be standing up against an unjust dictator e.g. Prophet Moses who stood against Pharaoh. Even if you give up something, which you adore greatly, for sake of God, it is counted as Jihad.

The military efforts that Muslims have now chosen, and which is not unfamiliar to the world, is also counted as jihad, but only as a last resort to fight against the oppression, and not as a means to spread Islam by force. Islam should never be spread by force. Every action of worship towards God should be derived from ones own mind, and should not be done as a result of being forced. As submission and love for God should come from the heart and not out of fear. The Qur’an says about forcing or compulsion in religion: “let there be no compulsion in religion: The truth stands out clear from error.” (Qur’an 2: 256). The Qur’an also says in Surah-Nahl that Islam should be spread by words and beautiful preaching. This was indeed the way of Prophet Muhammad.

Now to analyze Jihad, many who writes against Jihad, fail to explain the reason why most Muslims around the world set out to practice Jihad. Not all among Muslims are fools that they would just go out to a Christian dominant land and kill them all for no reason. There is a reason for every action. Most of the Muslims around the world including the Iraqis, Chechnyans and Palestinians are people who fight for their land. Fighting for ones own land is counted as a part of Jihad. This is the reason why they call their efforts, of winning their land back, as Jihad.

But the call for Jihad of many Muslim groups such as Al-Qaeda is certainly not Jihad. They fight and kill innocents, they force Islam onto others, and they are nothing but a group of well-learnt illiterates. They are people who learn Islam with a mind soaked in extremism. They think of no other means of spreading Islam except violence and bloodshed. They are not true Muslims and they do not follow the true Islam.There are scholars who use repulsive languages while preaching Islam, indeed their way of preaching is immoral.

Unfortunately, Islam is now judged upon these poisoned minds, and the world fails to see the very few true believers who practice the true Islam in the best manner. The truth about Jihad is that, only when a Muslim’s religion or land or family or tribe is threatened he is allowed to fight in the way of God. Only then the struggle is counted as jihad, only then he is a martyr. The Qur’an says: "slay them wherever you catch them" (2:191), then the preceding and following verses give the correct context: “Fight in the cause of God those who fight you, but do not transgress limits; for God loves not transgressors”. Thus one is only allowed to fight the one who fights him, and Prophet Muhammad said that you should never be the one who starts it.

If a Muslim man kills an innocent Christian, he is not a Mujahid (a person practicing Jihad), but indeed he is a great sinner in the eyes of God. Analyze this Hadith of Prophet Muhammad," If any Muslim kills an innocent man, in the eyes of God, his action equals to killing the whole world”. Here prophet Muhammad did not say “innocent Muslim”, but he said “innocent man”.

Many Muslims around the world practices Islam the wrong way. They should not be the reason why Islam should be misjudged. Islam always encourages peace, as it is the religion of peace. Islam should not be taken at face value due to these misguided Muslims. Islam is way beyond what the media demonstrates. They just show the violent Muslims in action, while they fail to show the innocents among Muslims who are being tortured due to the actions of the misguided among Muslims.

A Muslim should make his every single action and thought pure and remember God in fear and love, even while speaking a word. He should be peaceful, decent, patient, and mindful of God in all that he does. Islam gives every single person the freedom to practice his religion and also makes sure that a way to acquire the true knowledge is open. Islam is the religion, which has bonds with Christianity, Judaism, and surprisingly even Hinduism. Gaining of knowledge about these religions is the best way to learn these bonds. Lets spread the knowledege with a word and not a sword!