Does Quraan say to Kill Jews?

 Can you help me understand the Qur'an a bit. I just was in a heated discussion and was taken back by this guy who I was on a date with tonight who was raised Jewish and he told me the Qur'an says that to kill Jews. That it is hateful religion. I am very opened minded by all religions and I attend xxxx but still lack the understanding of the Qur'an. Has it changed translations and a lot of Muslims follow that one or what am I missing now. I really didn't know what to say but I knew it was very personal and upsetting to him. Any insight will help me understand more of of the Qur'an

Thanks

G

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Dear G:

The best way to handle difference is with patience, which you have done.  Obviously your friend has read something somewhere or must have heard it.

I would proceed by asking him to share that information and ask if he has seen it in Qur’aan, and you would like to see it your selves, so you can honestly share with your friends.

If you have the specifics, I will be happy to address them.

Here are some abstracts

Steve Blow writes in Dallas Morning News:
http://www.dallasnews.com/news/columnists/steve-blow/20100919-In-defense-of-Islam-pursuing-9397.ece

“Ghouse said he can understand fear and criticism of Islam because he went through a time of similar feelings. As a teen, he was troubled by passages of the Quran. He called himself an atheist for a while.

But he said deeper study led him to realize the Quran had been purposely mistranslated down through history. In the Middle Ages, European leaders commissioned a hostile Quran translation to foster warfare against Muslim invaders. Later, Muslim leaders produced another translation to inflame Muslims against Christians and Jews. "It was all for politics," he said.”

Indeed there are two falsified “Translations” of Quraan, the one by a Muslim Hilali Khan is put out of circulation now, but several million copies are still floating out there. There are a total of 25 translations, 2 are bad and hateful to Christians and Jews,  20 are ok, 2 are good and one is excellent which I don’t have a copy yet. The most recommended book the world over is the translation by Muhammad Asad, who was a Rabbi and a Jewish scholar. However, there are still a few verses he has not dealt with right. It is our responsibility to fix them.

Gina, Quraan is a book of guidance. God simply cannot hate any one and in Quraan God does not hate any one. He does prescribe severe punishment for wrong doers as a deterrent, but then offers a way out – repentance and asking for forgiveness. The most favorite person of God is the one who forgives. The most popular and most repeated vese in Quraan is – God is merciful, and kind – 114 times! That is the most dominant aspect of God.

There are bad dudes in Muslims, so are in Christians, Jews, Hindus and others. At this in history no one but Muslims are under the radar. A Rabbi announced and was endorsed by 70 Rabbis in Israel that it is authorized to kill even babies of the Palestinians. Does that make Judaism bad? No, it was that Rabbi not the religion.

(http://hatesermons.blogspot.com/2011/02/rabbi-urged-no-mercy-in-killing-of.html )

 Islam has got some of those, and of course the fundamentalist want to kill the Palestinians so Jesus can come back over dead bodies, pat Robertson and other continue to say evil things. 

There is no justification for any one of these guys. No one should have the right to take a life out.

Here are some samples of mis translations.

1.       Apology to Jews and Christians. 
http://quraan-today.blogspot.com/2008/01/unlike-jews-or-christians-17.html

2.       Muslim response to Geert Wilder’s bad movie about Islam
http://quraan-today.blogspot.com/2008/01/muslim-response-to-wilders.html

3.       Islamophobia and Quraan
http://quraan-today.blogspot.com/2008/03/islamophobia-and-quraan.html

4.       Jews turned into Apes
http://quraan-today.blogspot.com/2008/01/jews-turned-into-apes.html

5.       Difficult passages of Quraan
http://quraan-today.blogspot.com/2010/12/list-of-difficult-passages-in-quraan.html

You can visit the sites, if you have the time.

www.Quraantoday.com
www.Quraanconference.com
www.worldMuslimcongress.org

My site is www.MikeGhouse.net

Do Jews, Christians and Muslims better understand each other since 9/11?

TEXAS FAITH: Do Jews, Christians and Muslims better understand each other since 9/11?

Abstract: Jews need sincerity and not duplicity. Native Americans need an apology and there is a good amount of phobia embedded in Hindus about conversions. We believe in Jesus as a Prophet and not as a son of God. Unless we deal with tough issues about our differences, we will continue to fake being nice to each other and brood with ill-will within. There is indeed improved understanding among faiths since 9/11. But there also is deepening suspicion among them. One is spiritually motivated and the other is political. Please note, most of my writings are inclusive of all theist and atheists traditions, we all inhabit the earth and we need to figure how best to co-exist cohesively.

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Since September 11, 2001, many conversations have taken place among Muslims, Jews and Christians. There are official interfaith conversations occurring all over the globe, where participants dig into each other's texts. And numerous personal dialogues have been established over the last decade. Many of us have learned more about the three Abrahamic faiths since September 11, 2001 than perhaps we knew before that day.

But here's this week's question, which is simple in its wording but not necessarily simple to answer: Do followers of the three Abrahamic faiths really understand each other better since 9/11?

Eight Texas Faith Panelists including Mike Ghouse weighs in at: http://religionblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2011/09/texas-faith-do-jews-christians.html

MIKE GHOUSE, President, Foundation for Pluralism, Dallas

There is indeed improved understanding among faiths since 9/11. But there also is deepening suspicion among them. One is spiritually motivated and the other is political.

We were better off when we knew very little about each other. But as we faced the hostage crisis in 1979, the evangelical foray into politics, the Baptist convention on harvesting poor souls and finally 9/11, religion moved on to center stage. It will get better when we know more about each other.

On September 11, 2001, I was on the radio in Dallas attempting to make sense out of the chaos of the day and pave the way for relevant actions. Interfaith-faith prayers, blood donation and fundraising for the men and women in uniform were all in place by evening. The fog was clearing up. Osama bin Laden was the bad guy and Muslim-Americans had nothing to do with his actions, nor did they authorize him to terrorize any one. Indeed, he placed a wedge between Americans that still needs to be undone.

Atheists, Baha'i, Buddhists, Christians, Hindus, Muslims, Jains, Jews, Native Americans, Pagans, Sikhs, Wicca and Zoroastrians along with area city mayors, FBI, police and fire chiefs and community leaders graced the first interfaith event in Frisco. Out of which a new tradition evolved called Unity Day. It continues year after year.

But while we are trying to know more about each other, more needs to be done. Here are a few examples;

* Mosques in Dallas/ Fort Worth area opened their doors right after the 9/11 incident. As Christians walked in, they were naively welcomed by yet-to-be trained volunteers who said, "We believe in Jesus as a Prophet and not as a son of God." However, the volunteers were trained to welcome without conflict the very next week.

Of course, back in the 8th Century, a Syrian bishop had declared that Islam was a false religion. That declaration has remained in the psyche of a few Christians forever.

Pastor Robert Jeffress of the First Baptist Church of Dallas reiterated the statement and added, "Quran is a false book written by a false prophet." He was asked to prove it but failed.

There are several verses in Quraan that are mistranslated for political gains. Steve Blow in Dallas Morning News quoted me, "In the Middle Ages, European leaders commissioned a hostile Quran translation to foster warfare against Muslim invaders. Later, Muslim leaders produced another translation to inflame Muslims against Christians and Jews."

One such difficult passage is "Kill the infidels wherever you find them." Ten such propaganda verses were read to separate the myths from reality. They were not read by Muslim clergy, but by Baptist, Mormon, Protestant, Catholic, Unitarian, Methodist, New Age, Unificationists, Sikhs, Hindu and others at the Quraan Conference

*Shamelessly, anti-Semitism continues to operate under the radar. The anti-circumcision bills in San Francisco and Santa Monica were irksome to some, but frightening to others. Indeed, there are still a few Christians out there who cannot shake off what Fred Phelps was demonstrating with reckless posters such as "Christ Killers."

The Judeo-Christian phrase was thrown around in the 40's to build relationships between Jews and Christians. A whole industry of opportunists was born from it. The support for Jews by Billy Graham, Richard Nixon, Pat Robertson, John Hagee, Glenn Beck and other chest thumpers have ulterior motives. They want to cash in on the name of Israel and perhaps convert them. Jews need sincerity and not duplicity to feel genuinely secure.

*Native Americans need an apology for the destruction of their religion and there is a good amount of phobia embedded in Hindus about conversions. Some of them feel that Governors Nikki Haley and Bobby Jindal made it in politics because they converted to Christianity.

*The spiritual balance in the community needs to be restored through observing and following the Golden Rule, which is treat others as you would like others to treat you. Although we have failed in the past, such as when the city of Plano rejected a permit to build a Hindu temple in the early 80's and Richardson did not permit a Muslim school to open there in the mid-1990s, we still have come a long way. Thank God, those are now history and the public in the metroplex welcomes diversity.

* Interfaith meetings are still social gatherings. Leaders from smaller groups are invited as tokens rather than to genuinely get to know each other. Unless we deal with tough issues about differences, we will continue to fake being nice to each other and brood with ill-will within. There is plenty of room for honesty to grow and mature.

If we can learn to respect the otherness of other people and accept the God-given uniqueness of each one of us, then conflicts fade and solutions emerge. One of these days we will get there. Meanwhile, I am pleased to invite you to the 7th Annual 9/11 Memorial, the Unity Day USA on Sunday September 11 at 5:00 PM at the Unity Church of Dallas on Forest Lane. Details are at www.UnitydayUSA.com

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References:
Steve Blow – Dallas Morning News: http://www.dallasnews.com/news/columnists/steve-blow/20100919-In-defense-of-Islam-pursuing-9397.ece

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List of difficult passages: http://quraan-today.blogspot.com/2010/12/difficult-passages-in-quraan.html

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Quraan Conference program sequence: http://quraanconference.blogspot.com/2010/12/quraan-conference-program-sequence.html

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Mike Ghouse is committed to building a cohesive America and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day to the media and the public. He is a speaker thinker and a writer on the topics of pluralism, cohesive societies, Politics, Islam, interfaith, India and Peace. Over a thousand articles have been published on the topics and two of his books are poised to be released on Pluralism and Islam. Mike's work is reflected in 4 website's and 27 Blogs indexed at http://www.mikeghouse.net/ and you can find all of his current articles at www.TheGhousediary.com

Pluralism Speaker Mike Ghouse

http://pluralismspeaker.blogspot.com/

Pluralistic solutions have the power to sustain and take us into the next century with relative security, peace and prosperity. We cannot have peace and security when we do injustice to others.

Full profile at: http://www.mikeghouse.net/

Mike Ghouse is a speaker, writer, thinker, futurist and an activist of Pluralism, Islam, India and Civil Societies passionately offering pluralistic solutions on issues of the day.

He is a commentator at Fox News on the Hannity show, nationally syndicated Radio shows along with Dallas TV, Print and Radio networks and occasional interviews on NPR.  He has spoken at international forums including the Parliament of Worlds Religions in Melbourne, Middle East Peace initiative in Jerusalem, International Leadership conference in Hawaii, Washington and elsewhere.

Concerned by the divisiveness, he saw the need to bring Americans together and founded America Together Foundation committed to building a cohesive America, indeed it is in response to ACT America which is bent on pitching one American against the other.  We will be holding series of educational programs, conferences and workshops to address the issues that divide us such as Civil Right, GLBT, Quraan, Abortion, anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, Racial Profiling and Stereotyping.

The Annual Unity Day USA is in its 7^th year now, it is a purposeful event to bring Americans together, on this Unity Day, we the people of the United States of America of every faith, race, ethnicity, culture and background will gather to express our commitment to co-existence, unity, prosperity and wellbeing of our nation.  

Thanksgiving Celebration is in its 15^th year showcasing cultural diversity.

The 5^th Annual Reflections on Holocaust and Genocides is to learn and to acknowledge and reflect upon the terrible things we have inflicted upon each other and commit to avert such tragedies.  Through this event non-Jewish people have consciously learned about Holocaust for the first time, it was also for the first time that people of 14 faiths came together to join in to commemorate the Holocaust that commemorated within the Jewish Community for years. They are not alone anymore in their anguish, we are all in it together with them, and it is a Muslim initiative to effect a positive change.

The programs, seminars and workshops conducted by the Foundation for Pluralism have become a part of the America Together Foundation. While the Foundation for Pluralism continues championing the idea of co-existence through respecting and accepting the otherness of other, the commitment to nurturing the pluralistic ideals embedded in Islam through the World Muslim Congress continues.

Two books will be released this year; The American Muslim Agenda and My Journey to Pluralism.

Mike has written over 1000 Articles on Pluralism, Islam, India, Peace & Justice and civil societies published in a wide spectrum of Newspapers and Magazines around the world.

Locally, he is a panelist at Dallas Morning News's and writes weekly on a range of issues facing the nation. Washington Post, Huffington Post and other news papers and sites regularly publish his work.  

Mike is available to speak on Pluralism, Islam, Civil Societies, and Peace & Justice at your place of worship, school, work place, seminars, workshops or conferences. His work is reflected at three websites & twenty two Blogs listed at http://www.MikeGhouse.net/

# # #

Mike is an organizer of events, conferences, workshops and lectures to impart the values of pluralism at work, places of worship and the society at large, He is a conflict mitigater and a goodwill nurturer and believes that by learning to respect the otherness of others and accepting the God given uniqueness of each one of the seven billion of us, conflicts fade and solutions emerge.

He has dedicated his time to work with the leadership in offering insights and solutions to effectively managing the multi-religious, multi-ethnic, and multicultural societies.

Mike Presides the Foundation for Pluralism championing the idea of co-existence through respecting and accepting the otherness of other   

INITIATOR



The following events were initiated, organized and established with the theme of bringing diverse people together to learn and to know about each other.



Annual reflections on Holocaust and Genocides since 2007; <憼ˢ>
The mission is to create awareness of the inhumanity in us and find solutions for peaceful co-existence. Mike believes that, "we cannot be safe, unless others around us are not" ( ADD LINKS - TJP - DMN 2009 - DMN 2006 - Survivors-Jewish Post - Fox TV )

The annual Unity Day USA took root in 2005, on this Unity Day USA, we the people of the United States of America of every faith, race, ethnicity, culture and background will gather to express our commitment to co-existence, Unity, safety, prosperity and well being of our nation with liberty and justice for all. 

The Annual Thanksgiving Celebrations began in 1993 to bring immigrant, indigenous and born Americans together. The purpose of celebrating this event is to give thanks to the creator for the blessings of precious life while enjoying the cultural heritage of each ethnic group.  

EDUCATOR

"Wisdom of Religion" - all the beautiful religions of the world was an hourly Radio talk show broadcasted daily.  Over 700 hours of educational programming was relayed learning about religious, humanistic and the pluralistic traditions. 

"Festivals of the World" was a weekly Radio program on Saturdays, where the essence of every festival was shared, so we all can have an idea of how other people celebrate or commemorate their holidays. (more on right panel)  

Workshops titled “Understanding Religion – every beautiful religion” were conducted for two years.  

Mike's purposeful presence in the media is to foster critical thinking.  He is blessed to have been given the time on national and local TV, Radio and Print medium to share pluralistic solutions on the issues of the day.

Pluralistic solutions have the power to sustain and take us into the next century with relative security, peace and prosperity. We cannot have peace and security when we do injustice to others.

Mike Presides the Foundation for Pluralism championing the idea of co-existence through respecting and accepting the otherness of other.