PeaceLoving

Hi Placid Thanks for your kind response. I doubt if you can recall uncalled-for criticisms from me. On the contrary, there have been a number of occasions when I have tried to stop people from insulting your beliefs. A recent example may be the thread “Who said the Bible was corrupted”. In post #26, I said that “a discussion of this nature cannot lead to the maintenance of peace in the world” and I urged people to engage in “more useful endeavours”. In post #35, I even said that “the Quran does not explicitly say that the Bible has been tampered with”. And naturally enough, people objected to my statement in the next post #36. You must acknowledge that I have never insulted your faith and that on the contrary, I have argued against Muslims on your behalf. As far as your son is concerned, he is a different kettle of fish and indeed a very loyal son. But his posts give no indication that he truly shares your approach. In any case, I don’t think you should be using him as a bodyguard. It is not fair to have a bodyguard when no one else in the Internet does. If you cannot tough it out on your own, you shouldn't be here. Of course it is. But within certain parameters. In any case, do you think that you have succeeded in getting anyone to accept your views? I have been monitoring this forum for many years and I can assure you that no one has changed his mind because of your lectures. You can keep explaining to them to your heart’s content. It will not help. And it is no one’s fault. It is the general atmosphere that we live in, governed by the Internet. Most people visiting this forum come just to have a swipe or to have some fun, not to enter into discussions in an honest and serious way. You are welcome but please allow me to explain the gripes in my earlier post. 1. First of all, I never said that you were trying to convert anyone, as your son tried to accuse me. What I did say was that you do “push your own beliefs”. And there is overwhelming evidence for that. I will give you one example straightaway. You have said countless times that Muhammad was sent to the Arab people - indeed so many times that I have lost count. The last I recall can be found in post 55 of the thread “Did prophethood end at John”. I accept that everyone has the right to express his views. But to keep repeating an offensive statement, out of context, when you know only too well that Muslims believe that he was sent to all mankind, does not bode well for your attitude. It shows that there is something sinister going on in the inner cavities of your mind. Why else would you say it again and again, knowing full well that it is contrary to our beliefs and would hurt us? In fact, there are many facets in your approach which are extremely strange. Do you realize that you don’t converse with people, rather you preach? A person trying to converse will not make post after post after post after post without someone else intervening. Isn't that what you do so very often? That is not how a conversation or a discussion is undertaken. As one example, let us take a look at the thread “Did prophethood end at John”. And then look at post numbers 25 through to 47 in that thread. There is an unbroken sequence of 23 posts, one after another, all by the same person. And who would that be? Aren't those 23 unbroken posts from 25 to 47 all yours? The same goes for post # 63 through to 69 (7 posts), 79 to 85 (7 posts) and 89 to 102 (14 posts). All yours! Do you call that a discussion or a lecture. No, it is not a discussion or a conversation. Clearly, you are preaching. You are not engaging in inter-faith dialogue but preaching to people. And endlessly preaching those who do not share your faith is no different from “pushing” your beliefs on them. And that is what I had said. This is a discussion board, not a church lectern. But you have taken control over this forum, turning it from the “Islam/Christianity/Judaism dialogue forum” into the “Placid lecture series”. 2. Also noteworthy is the fact that instead of learning, you have shown a strong inclination to “teach” Islam to Muslims. You joined this site way back in 2005, that is, 10 years ago. And considering the length of time you have spent here, your learning curve has been rather poor. After all this time, you did not even know that there are countless prophecies imputed to the Prophet. In post #55 of the same thread, you said “but he didn't prophesy great events for the future, did he?” And when you were countered, you merely said “I’ll take your word for it”, as if you did not quite believe but would grudgingly take it on, as a favour to us. 3. And finally, you resort frequently to conjecture thereby making some extremely insulting statements at times. For example, in post 68 again of the same thread, you said “some Imams compromised their teachings perhaps to be in better harmony with the caliph”. Is that what you have learnt after 10 years at Shiachat? In a later post, you conceded your confusion. Your son has mentioned several times that you have a great track record. Unfortunately, it doesn't particularly matter here. What matters to us is how you present yourself here. We are actually grateful that compared to other non-Muslims, you are indeed somewhat Islam-friendly but unfortunately, in a very bizarre sort of way. Something is seriously amiss. So where do we go from here is up to you. You can continue as you have so far, making long speeches and preaching or you can seriously try to exchange information. As a mild-mannered member of the forum, most of us have always treated you respectfully. And we have no reason to change. But I am giving you my honest advice which, believe me, will help you more than anyone else. I strongly believe you should spare a moment to ponder over each of the points I have raised. I am leaving on a holiday and when I am back, I will seriously consider de-registering myself from this lecture theatre. I am sorry to say that it is not very exciting to be subjected to the onslaught of unwanted lectures. Occasionally perhaps yes, but not as routine. All the best, my friend. In spite of the reservations I may have about your methodology, one does not need a microscope to see that you are a man of goodwill and good intentions. God be with you. And cheers

The Arabic name for Jerusalem

Why do you keep telling everyone your real name? It is dangerous to tell your real name on the Internet.

SoP, I don't need to discuss it with you nor do I expect a son to see a flaw in his father's methodology. Thanks for your posts.

I have made my point and I stand by it. If you are hurt or you don't agree, it is your prerogative and it hurts me too . But there is not one single word in my post that is disrespectful. Just a clear and candid expression of my views - nothing more. I agree that your father is a well-meaning man. But the reason for his assiduous labor in this forum is absolutely clear, as far as I am concerned. My opinion is based on several years of observation and if it is wrong, well, that is always possible. But I doubt it. Nothing more to add. No offence was intended.

Hi Placid May be But talking endlessly to a Muslim crowd about Christian beliefs is not the same as bringing sinners to repentance, which is what, if you pardon my words, you as well as Christian Lady have so assiduously been doing. To bring sinners to repentance, you need to talk to people about sins that are current in society at the time. Thus if you are living in a country like the one I am in, where every 14 year old has had illicit sex, you need to talk about what Jesus said about gouging out your eyes being better than looking at a woman with a sexual glance. If you are living in an environment, where everyone is pushing for homosexuality to be acceptable, you need to do a "jihad" against homosexuality. On the contrary, all you have been pushing for in this site is your belief about Jesus, which you are well aware, is not the same as ours. I am sorry to say that I cannot, for a second, accept that in your long lectures at Shiachat, you are trying to bring sinners to repentance. The only reason why you are here is to push your own beliefs. If you were truly anxious to bring sinners to repentance, you would not be wasting your time here. You would be going to schools in your native environment telling children about Jesus' teachings on sex. You would be telling them that illicit sex with either sex is a sin. You would try to contribute to stem the rising tide of "gay and lesbian" acceptance. May be you are doing all that. But your time in this site is definitely not being spent in bringing sinners to repentance. You know very well that I have always respected you but that does not mean that I can accept even remotely the possibility that in this site, you are trying to bring sinners to repentance. That is definitely not your intention. By your own admission, you are an evangelist. But what you are clearly trying to do is to push Christian beliefs into Muslim minds. You can call it proselyting or call it something else, it does not matter. But that is what you have been doing for the last ten years. An evangelist who would want to bring sinners to repentance would have a completely different action plan , not waste his time at SC. You are welcome to continue this way if you wish. This site is one of the most liberal in the Internet. We will continue to welcome you and treat you with respect.

What is a soglodyte? My dictionary does not have this word.

So essentially an evangelist's main mission is proselyting - trying to convert people.

it is happening literally every day. When one incident takes place in Paris, all hell breaks loose. But Shias are being killed at the rate of about 8,000 pr year. Primarily in Iraq & Pakistan, but also in Afghanistan and other places. The West knows exactly how deadly the Salafi kingdom of KSA is but the courtship goes on. That is how the world moves, with the slogan "peace and justice for all men". Plain rubbish, of course

Read The Islamophobia Industry by Nathan Lean & Islamophobia and the politics of empire by Deepa Kumar The zeitgeist. Everything has a time and place.

Hi Placid Very interesting. Almost everything corresponds with our teachings. For example James 4:15 has the exact equivalent in the Quran 18:23-24

Just because most Jews don't believe that Uzair was the son of God, does not necessarily mean that there was no Jewish sect that did not. The Quran is talking about local Jews, not all the Jews of the world.

Good on you. And just as you believe that Islam is a false religion, there are many people who believe that Christianity is not only a false but a super-false religion. In fact, your beloved chosen people believe that Jesus was not the Messiah at all. So you don't need to keep repeating something you have told us many times before. Perhaps your religion does tell you to "hurt" the feelings of others. And you are clearly enjoying endlessly repeating the same mantra over and over again. Clearly, all that "love your enemies" is a load of cra p. To be told to non-Christians in order to buy a favorable opinion and a possible new convert. And then to be shoved under the mattress.

Even with a world revival, most people will be believers in name. In other words, they will appear to believe but as soon as Satan whispers in their hearts, they are back on their old track.

Did you include all the terrorists in the Muslim population? And did you include all the pimps of Hollywood and the strip-tease dancers of Paris in the Christian population? Those numbers are all meaningless. Only God knows who is a true believer. I, for one, cannot say that God regards me as one. Only God knows. And the holocaust.