If Islam is evil and promotes terrorism...?

Question

Why did:
·Malcolm X - early leader of American "Black Muslim"/Nation of Islam movement; later a convert to Sunni Islam
·Cat Stevens - British rock musician; changed name to Yusuf Islam
·John Coltrane - prominent jazz saxophonist and composer
·Art Blakey - American Jazz musician
·Muhammad Ali - boxer
·Matthew Saad Muhammad - world champion boxer (formerly Matt Franklin)
·Dwight Muhammad Qawi - world champion boxer (formerly Dwight Braxton)
·Eddie Mustapha Muhammad - world champion lightweight boxer (formerly Eddie Gregory)
·Mustafa Hamsho - boxer
·Akbar Muhammad - boxer
·Mike Tyson - boxer
·Hamdan Chris Eubank - boxer (super middleweight boxing champion)
·Kareem Abdul-Jabbar - basketball player
·Queen Noor - American-born queen of Jordan during reign of the late King Hussein I
·Maryam Jameelah - Jewish American essayist and poet. Formerly Margaret Marcus.
·Daniel Moore - Anglo-American poet
·Muhammad Marmaduke (William) Pickthall - author
become Muslim

Answer 1

Islam is a very practical religion. It offers a lot of intellectual
stimulation. The two main concepts of oneness of God and brotherhood of man
are some thing unique about Islam. There is no intermediary between man and
his creator. ..The Stipulation for prayer five times a day is an effective
means of direct communion with Allah the Almighty and the weekly
congregation of Juma prayer is a good opportunity for social interaction..
.It may seem strange to many, especially in the west, that I have embraced a
religion that is an anathema to them in the context of terrorism. My answer
to such a comment is that Islam as a religion is not to be blamed for
terrorism. Islam does not instig! ate its followers to indulge in terrorist
acts. All acts of terrorism have to be viewed in their respective local
context."- Neil Sharp, a Canadian pilot
Philosopher, Orator, Apostle, Legislator, Warrior, Conqueror of ideas
Restorer of rational beliefs, of a cult without images; the founder of
twenty terrestrial empires and of one spiritual empire, that is Muhammed. As
regards all standards by which human greatness may be measured, we may well
ask, is there any man greater than he? - John Austin
As an adult convert, Islam gives me strength to move beyond a tortured past
of molestation, prostitution and drug use.
- Juwayriah, a formerly devout Catholics



"Islam means submission to God, not that you are chosen to go out and bomb a
place - that is a specific group that is not practicing Islam the way it was
intended.We don't drink alcohol, we don't eat pork, we pray five times a
day, and people look at that and call us fanatics...
Punk girls wore tight pants, things that showed their figure..My hair was
uncombed.I was always stressed out, doing things I shouldn't do..I prayed to
be led to the right path...I read more and more about Islam..I wanted to
know what it was that led so many people to submit entirely to this
religion....When I read the Quran, I found the truth. ! It spoke about
serving others, putting others first." -Gonzalez, a formerly devout
Catholics

Islam is a religion, which transcends all petty prejudices of color, race
and territorial boundaries. That is why the followers of other religions,
with a nearsighted vision, have a sense of overflowing pride and relief when
they embrace Islam. Deserting the religion of one?s forefathers is one of
the most difficult decisions, but the golden principles and the virtues of
broadmindedness of Islam have persuaded mankind to adopt it as a way of
life.-Jermaine Jackson, brother of world-famous star Michael Jackson,
'I am doing this for God...A Latino women embracing Islam
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9352969/

"I began to see Islam with its own eyes, as the unadulterated, pristine
belief in the one and only, the true God, Who does not beget, and was not
begotten, Whom nothing and nobody resembles . In place of the qualified
deism of a tribal God and the constructions of a divine Trinity, the Qur'an
showed me the most lucid, most straightforward, the most abstract - thus
historically most advanced - and least anthropomorphic concept of God. The
Qur'an's ontological statements, as well as its ethical teachings, impressed
me as profoundly plausible, "as good as gold," so there was no room for even
the slightest doubt about the authenticity of Muhammad's prophetic mission.
People who understand human nature cannot fail to appreciate the infinite
wisdom of the "Dos and Don'ts" handed down from! God to man in the form of
the Qur'an." Dr. Murad Hofmann-Beltsville, Germany

I am so very glad that I am a Muslim. Islam is my life. Islam is the beat of
my heart. Islam is the blood that courses through my veins. Islam is my
strength. Islam is my life so wonderful and beautiful. Without Islam I am
nothing, and should Allah ever turn His magnificent face from me, I could
not survive." -Torquato Cardilli (Italy's ambassador to Saudi Arabia )

"There is some irony in the fact that the supposedly best, brightest, and
most idealistic of ministers-to-be are selected for the very best of
seminary education, e.g. that offered at that time at the Harvard Divinity
School. The irony is that, given such an education, the seminarian is
exposed to ... much ... historical truth. .. As such, it is no real wonder
that almost a majority of such seminary graduates leave seminary, not to
"fill pulpits", where they would be asked to preach that which they know is
not true, but to enter the various counseling professions. Such was also the
case for me, as I went on to earn a master's and doctorate in clinical
psychology." -Christian Minister's Conversion to Islam
"When I told my colleagues at work that I had converted, their first
reaction was to ask whether I had a Muslim boyfriend," she recalls. "They
couldn't believe I had done it of my own free will......Islam demands a
closeness to God. Islam is simpler, more rigorous, and it's easier because
it is explicit. I was looking for a framework; man needs rules and behavior
to follow. Christianity did not give me the same reference points." Ms
Fallot (Birmingham University in Britain)
http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/1227/p01s04-woeu.html


But human beings are fundamentally religious. When you reject belief in God
as a society . . . people still search for the meaning of the! ir lives.
Where do I come from? Where am I going? What is my life all about?"They want
to know the purpose of their life. They don't just want an empty life filled
with material things, a great house and a car. They want to know more,"
"-Brian O'Loughlin, Vicar-General for Perth's Catholic Archdiocese
I would rather die with this(silken scarf) on than live without it.-Dr.
Amina Haq


"[Before] I picked up the Koran, my attitude was, `There's something wrong
with this religion,'" said Matos, 20, of Miramar. A friend gave her a copy !
of the Koran. "But then I saw it was filled discussions of grace from God,
of the protection of things we talk about as human rights, of a universal
brotherhood. ... This is a religion that encourages thinking and
contemplation," she said. In May, Matos converted by reciting the shahada, a
prayer in which converts attest to their belief in Allah and Mohammed in
front of Muslim witnesses. Islam now circumscribes her life. She is studying
Arabic, prays five times a day, wears a hijab and follows Islamic dietary
laws.-Matos
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/southflorida/sfl-pconverts03jan03,0,7
380692.story


What is the most dangerous and destructive invention that mankind has
produced?
It's Religion
- The Miami Herald

What betters and empowers women? It's Religion of Islam
-The Face Behind the Veil: The Extraordinary Lives of Muslim Women
Throughout America

Speaking on the aspect of equality before God in Islam, the famous poetess
of India, SAROJINI NAIDU says:
"It was the first religion that preached and practiced democracy; for, in
the mosque, when the call for prayer is sounded and worshippers are gathered
together, the democracy of Islam is embodied five times a day when the
peasant and king kneel side by side and proclaim: 'God Alone is Great'... I
have been struck over and over again by this indivisible unity of Islam that
makes man instinctively a brother." (S. Naidu, IDEALS OF ISLAM, vide
Speeches & Writings, Madras, 1918, p. 169)
"During the last three years, I became interested in the Quran . . . . From
my study and what I have learned from this conference, I believe that
everything that has been recorded in the Quran fourteen hundred years ago
must be the truth, that can be proved by the scientific means.. I think this
is the time to say La ilaha illa Allah, there is no god to worship except
Allah (God), Muhammad rasoolu Allah, Muhammad is Messenger of Allah......The
most precious thing I have gained from coming to this conference is La ilaha
illa Allah, and to have become Muslim." - Tejatat Tejasen( Chairman of the
Department of Anatomy)
"Islam is a religion of peace, love, coexistence, tolerance and modernity.
But due to the behavior of a few of us, it's labeled as an intolerant
orthodoxy. He says that the image of Islam is being tarnished by a small
group of people and that Muslims must come forward to present before the
world the correct picture of their divine faith. The enormity of their
ignorance of the Islamic history and its code of conduct is mind-boggling.
We should be united in fighting these elements for the cause of
Islam..Muslims should go to lengths to follow the basics, which say 'be kind
to your neighbors, keep smiling when you meet others, pray and do charity."-
Dileep Kumar to A.R. Rahman( the famous music wizard-India)
"It has been a great pleasure for me to help clarify statements in the
Qur'an about human development. It is clear to me that these statements must
have come to Muhammad from God, or Allah, because most of this knowledge was
not discovered until many centuries later. This proves to me that Muhammad
must have been a messenger of God, or Allah."-Prof Keith L. Moore
(Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology)

Muhummed is the most successful of all Prophets and religious
personalities.- Annie Besant, The Life and Teachings of Muhammad, Madras
1932, p. 4



ISLAM is the fastest growing religion in the West. Nevertheless, the West
has many stereotypes and misconceptions about ISLAM that are due to the
media, prejudice, and ignorance. ISLAM is often looked upon as an extremist,
terrorist religion. Many people hate ISLAM and do not want to acknowledge
its true teachings. In contrast to what many Westerners think of ISLAM,
Islam is a peaceful religion, which does not promote any forms against the
teachings.

"A book which we have revealed to you (Muhammad) so that you may lead the
people from out of the darknesses into the light by their Lord's leave to
the path of the All-Mighty, the Praiseworthy."

{Invite (mankind, O Muhammad ) to the Way of your Lord (i.e. Islam) with
wisdom (i.e. with the Divine Inspiration and the Qur'an) and fair preaching,
and argue with them in a way that is better. Truly, your Lord knows best who
has gone astray from His Path, and He is the Best Aware of those who are
guided.} (Holy Quran-16:125)

Answer 2

Best way to correct the misperception of Islam and show its loving and compassionate side is to first accept and have compassionate empathy for those who misperceive Islam. Then, realize that the problem is those who are giving Islam a bad name (the terrorists and others who do bad things in the name of Islam). Then, each time a terrorist does something bad in Islam's name, or each time an Islamic theocracy subjugates the rights of women in the name of Islam (e.g. can't drive in Saudi Arabia), get one's fellow muslims to openly protest in large numbers against them.

Answer 3

good question These are obviously well educated well liked individuals that many admired. It seems the "they" in the news of nameless persons of "that religion" spurs along the distrust, but when you can relate to the person as being perhaps from your ethnic or language group, they suddenly morph into being OK.
It;s much easier to hate those that dress.talk. appear different to us. we really can't even see beyond that once we've formed our opinion with news on TV encouraging it. Of course these are successful welloff persons(not all started that way but many did) that didn't feel desparate as many poor do in oppressed areas....

Answer 4

people will always find the thruth if they search for it whole heartedly. maybe they found their solace in Islam. its their choice and freedom of religion. and they have whole right to practise it if they find peace. and the same goes for those who leave Islam too. God will guide us to our destiny.

Answer 5

It would be just as easy for me to make excuses for the bad things those people did, just as people have made excuses for the things that Osama B Laddie, and Zwahiri Potato did.

Answer 6

Well, Mike Tyson is a pretty violent person. But other than that, I see your point.

Answer 7

Because they felt like it? Freedom of religion, something I hear doesn't really exist in most Islamic countries.

Answer 8

Well if u see their profession,..mostly BOXER,...They did much boxing in moeslem world

Answer 9

Allot of the people in your list are boxers, they probably got hit in head too many times and brought there intelligence level down to islamic levels.

Answer 10

let me clarify..islam ain't evil and is the best not one of the best but the best religion..

peace