Did Islam make you an Agnostic as it did with me?

Question

Before 911, I was part of a mega-church community. After 911 I started studying Islam and in the process, examining religion itself.

About two years into the process, I felt the first spikes of doubt in my own faith. When I reached a understanding of Islam, I concluded that it was a horribly destructive force in the world and tried deprogramming Muslims online by discussing Quran errors.

Doing this as a hobby, for a few years, I learned a lot. First, only the educated people could be deprogrammed and that took time...months. Second, the methods of rationalization Muslims used could be applied to other religions as well. I then explored whether I was rationalizing and discovered I was.

Furthermore, when I learned how horrible a self-righteous violent religious animal could be, i asked myself why God even allows such things. Consider how Muslims passionately praise God during their violence "Alluah Akbar!!!", surely God could stop such "misrepresentations" right?

You might say "well, they dont represent God!", but this misses the point. Im speaking of his inaction. If he wants to test us, he can do it in a trillion other ways right?

These poor ignorant people are made poor and ignorant by their false and horrible religion yet, they truely believe they serve one God, truely and sincerely...surely if God exists, he could simply not let dominoes like this fall...he could allow other calamities but not those that totally undermine a reasonable person from believing in him.

Answer 1

islam has made me feel things I have never felt before - like hate for muslims

islam = death cult

Answer 2

Everyone has a mind to think and judge for themselves what is right and what is wrong. I don't think your source of learning Islam was very good if you concluded that it is violent. There are many anti-Muslim sites spreading wrong info about Islam purposely. I'm sorry to hear that you are one of them. But falsifying information will only harm you more.
If you need to learn about Islam you need a proper person to guide you. Someone who can answer your questions correctly. There are good and bad people in every religion. God can stop whoever He wants. But our life on earth is a test. Until the judgement day comes when the truth will be revealed to all. It's horrible that you are personally trying to misguide people. But there are people of every religion who have either strong faith or poor ones. Surely, the ones who are misguided easily do not know much about their religion. It has nothing to do with education rather than knowledge about Islam.

Answer 3

If you believe this way, and I respect that you have that right, why do you consistently pose these long question on this board? They are always more a statement than a question - so you don't really have anything you want to learn, but some agenda to share.

Do you know love? Trust? Sadness? These things cannot be seen, and, at least by this person, not always fully understood. They exist, they influence our lives--yet are unseen.

Having faith is the same, it is the evidence of things not seen. Why not give us that? Let must muddle through our lives believing what we want, you are free to do the same.

What are you searching for that Christianity and Islam has not given you?

Answer 4

I am sorry you did not bond with any one in the mega church but basically that is one of its biggest faults. To have found a good friend who knew scripture enough to get you past some of your earlier questions would have been ideal. However may I suggest getting educated on the internet and find a small bible study group where questions can be raised and possibly answered and if not bring up the question here. If you want to pick up on your christion education there are many sites you can go to. The most all inclusive one that I have found is

http://www.carm.org/doctrine.htm

Thanks for sharing your heart

Answer 5

If what you said is the result of your studies, then you have no idea about Islam.
You began your studies with a biased view.

Let an Arab person explain you what Islam is
And you must not study the translated books in the name of Quran. You must study the Quran in its Arabic Language because it's the original one.
Islam doesn't demand to kill people of other religions, but you Americans are faked by your media.
Your media tells you that Muslims are terrorists and they seek killing people; you are faked by these lies.
You must be objective when you study a certain religion.
I am a protestant from Australia, but I studied a lot of other religions and still studying more and more including Islam,
I studied Quran in its Arabic Original Copy, and I found it the most logical religion ever existed. And I have been studying it for 7 years, it never contained anything about killing people because they are of different religions.
You have no idea about Islam.
I visited Arab and Islamic countries to study Islam, did you do that.
I studied it with objective teachers not with biased ones.

Look I care about religious studies, if you want to study Islam serioulsy please contact me and send me emails at [e-mail]

YOU AMERICANS ARE FAKED BY YOUR MEDIA

WAKE UP AMERICANS, ISLAM IS NOT AGAINST YOU
YOU ARE AGAINST ISLAM
ISLAM DOESN'T ORDER TO KILL YOU
WAKE UP AMERICANS

ISLAM IS THE MOST LOGICAL RELIGION EVER EXISTED

Answer 6

I don't think that that is fair. You chose to look at the worst of your religion and use that as a reason for leaving God. I have to question your rationalization. Still, I would challenge you, using only the New Testament, to find the same violence. Remeber, we are talking about the same God. It is true though that Christianity have its fanatical bigots though as well.

Answer 7

Read your Qu'ran with an open mind...do not rationalize open your heart to Allah and seek His forgiveness and wisdom. Be humble and put nothing above God. Do not judge Islam with a Christian mind (although that is hard for us in the USA). Do not judge Islam by the terrorists who claim to be Muslims they are obviously not doing Gods will. Seek only what is in YOUR heart and and make it right with Allah...each is only responsible for themselves at the Judgment. God will destroy the unbelievers and the victory is His for nothing is greater than God/Allah. May you find the right path.

Answer 8

well Las Vegas Steve,

you cannot judge all religiions by what the KKK of the Islamic world... or by what the KKK of the Cristian world is up to

in fact Islam is fundamentally different in the way it views God and the requirments of man and so I got no idea why a chirstian would reject his faith based on the acts of some Muslims

Jesus himself said there were people who would kill you thnking they are doing God a favor... so... He was right on the money and history has many examples of groups of toxically regligious people from many areas including cultural Christians who were far less into the love of God than they themselves ever realized
Dont follow their bad example

as far as inaction? I think John Piper has good comments on the sovereignty of God as it relates to things like the World Trade Center
http://www.desiringgod.org/library/fresh_words/2002/090402.html
http://www.desiringgod.org/library/topics/suffering/how_minister.html
http://www.desiringgod.org/library/sermons/01/091601.html

Answer 9

Hello Steve,

You know back in Old Testament times there was a god called Molech. Men would worhsip this god by burning their children in a fire to sacrifice them to the god Molech.

The people that worshipped this god were among the people that God directed the Israelites to wipe out. That's right - God brought his judgment down upon those who abused and murdered their children and claimed that it was bringing honor to god because it brought shame to the name and character of the one true God.

When I think about that kind of thing, images fill my mind of terrorist groups dressing up their children in suicide bomb jackets and giving them AK-47's. How can God allow this? He is patient with those people and he is merciful. He wants to give them full time to repent and stop doing such terrible things. But his judgment is coming and when it does it will be swift and complete (I am not pulling this out of my hat btw. it is all in the OT)

Btw self-righteousness is a sin - a sin that says we can be good without God. God said all our "righteous" acts are like filthy rags to him - we need Christ's righteousness and we need to admit that we are nothing without Jesus.

Answer 10

I know exactly how you feel. The force that guides the universe has many faces. I understand it as the "Holy Spirit". I understand the limitations of the human mind, and don't believe for a moment that any one of us can know exactly how it works or what it wants. Anyone who kills "for God" surely seems to be doing it to satisfy their petty and EVIL desire for revenge. If I were God, I'd be looking down on this planet shaking my head and saying "wow, some people just don't get it!"

Peace!

Answer 11

we also refused what happen in 11/9 , it was crime I believe in that and believe also that it is differant between politic and human hearts .
I send this to friends who interest that we can with hand by hand do
what can stop any terror and war as human people with differant nationalities
and religion
In GOD we trust .... and god well is peace for all world ... as we pray to god we can also do what we can for peace , we can all with our refuse terror , change and stop this war and terror for you and for us too .
GOD bless all and keep all safe and peace for all the world .