Saturday, July 31, 2010

Journey Through Acts with Acts 17!

Starting tomorrow (August 1st), we're going to be discussing one chapter of the Book of Acts per day here on Answering Muslims. I'll post a link to the chapter, along with some introductory thoughts. We invite everyone to join us, and to share insights, interesting commentaries, etc., in the comments section. If you have a good commentary you haven't read, now would be the time to take it off the shelf, since you have the opportunity to share valuable information with many brothers and sisters. By the end of August, we'll have our very own Acts Commentary!

Friday, July 30, 2010

Thursday, July 29, 2010

David and Nabeel Enter the Dearborn Arab Festival

There are many ways to enter the Dearborn Arab Festival. But this is by far the coolest.

Pay close attention to our comments about freedom of speech and the importance of open dialogue. Quite ironic given what happened less than three hours later.

PART ONE


PART TWO

Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Acts 17 Venn Diagram

Thanks to Glenn for taking the time to clarify our position. We've never claimed that all Christians in Dearborn are being harassed by police. We've claimed that some Christians are being harassed, and that security and police pay special attention to Acts 17, because of our combined characteristics. Glenn put together the following Venn Diagram. Each circle represents the total population with the named characteristic. The overlap areas represent people who combine those characteristics.


So our claim would go something like this: People who fall into one of the three circles may be harassed; people who fall into two of the circles have a greater chance of being harassed; people who find themselves in all three circles will be harassed, assaulted, and thrown in jail.

I invite our readers to pass this post on whenever someone employs the "but other Christians weren't harassed, so you weren't either" response.

Cartoon: Dearborn Police vs. the Gospel

A couple of people sent me a link to this cartoon over at the Sacred Sandwich. Not much commentary needed.



Let's just hope that the Dearborn Police Department handles cartoons better than certain other groups.

Monday, July 26, 2010

David Wood and Mayor John C. O'Reilly on the Bob Siegel Show

If you missed my discussion with the mayor, you can listen to it here. (It's also available elsewhere thanks to some of our readers.)

The mayor claims that we were indeed blocking the tent entrance and causing traffic problems. Please watch the following two videos to see people freely entering and exiting the tent. As for a crowd behind me, you can clearly see people walking behind me.





Interestingly, the mayor seems to think that the police officers who told us we didn't need to move simply weren't familiar with the law. Yet the mayor constantly insists that we knew we were breaking the law. Really? Two people from out of state were supposed to know the law better than police officers who told us we didn't need to move? Here's the footage of police telling us that we were fine right where we were:



The mayor also seems to understand that we weren't pretending to be arrested, as Nabeel pointed out here:



There is, of course, a far more massive problem with the mayor's version of events. He's claiming that police arrested us for blocking traffic and gathering a crowd. But Negeen was arrested well before us. Since we hadn't yet caused any of the problems we were supposedly arrested for, why were police already coming after us? This strongly supports our version of events--that security and police were targeting us, and that they're now grasping at straws in order to justify their violations of our rights.

Due to time constraints on the show, several questions remain unanswered. Here are a few questions I would like the mayor to answer.

(1) The mayor continues to refer to "free speech zones." But as Nabeel pointed out, in the very cases the mayor appeals to, the courts ruled that people are free to walk around holding discussions (as we were doing). Does the mayor have a court case where a court ruled that people are not allowed to hold a dialogue in public?

(2) The mayor acknowledges that security last year was poorly trained, and that additional training was needed for this year. But the point of our video last year was that security was harassing Christians and attacking us for asking a question at a booth. If the mayor admits that they behaved poorly due to insufficient training, why demonize us for making this public? The fact is that the additional training was required specifically because we drew attention to injustice. Shouldn't the mayor be thanking us for making the festival a better, safer place?

(3) The mayor says that the sidewalk and street are no longer public sites during the Arab Festival. Is a site no longer a public site, even if it's a public event on public property?

(4) If the mayor really thinks that people can't have an open, honest discussion on camera, why does he keep going on television and radio programs?

(5) Why does the mayor think that Muslims are incapable of having a discussion when cameras are involved? Why do Dearborn leaders think that having a public discussion with Muslims is equivalent to inciting a riot? It seems that the mayor and the police department have a lower view of Muslims than we do. We've had open dialogues and debates with Muslims in numerous places, and we've never had a problem. We believe that Muslims are quite capable of public dialogue, even on camera. But as soon as we get to Dearborn, we find police intervening to prevent a riot as soon as dialogue starts. Do they believe that Muslims, by nature, will respond violently when someone answers their questions? Isn't this an insult to Muslims?

(6) If the problem is that we were supposedly blocking a tent entrance, why not arrest the Muslims who approached us? (We don't advocate arresting people for having discussions, but given the mayor's comments about the presence of a crowd violating festival rules, this question obviously arises.) We were on our way out of the festival so that Nabeel could eat his falafel. If people form a crowd around us, and a crowd is illegal, shouldn't the crowd have been arrested, rather than the people who were peacefully responding to questions and recording the dialogue? Or was there a fear that arresting these Muslims (who, according to Dearborn leaders, are too violent for dialogue and prone to riot) would lead to a riot, and that the peaceful Christians should instead be targeted (to the cheers of Muslims)?

(7) If it's illegal to draw a crowd, and celebrities draw crowds, is it illegal for celebrities to attend the Dearborn Arab Festival? Would Rima Fakih be arrested if she showed up? Would she be stripped down to a tank-top and tossed in a jail cell, the way Negeen was?

(8) The mayor says that the letter he wrote was nothing more than his personal opinion. Does the mayor believe that it is permissible for the leader of a city to favor one side and spread bias against the other when a court case is pending? Is it even possible to get an unbiased jury in Dearborn now?

(9) In his final remarks, the mayor says that there were no problems until Acts 17 showed up. But we know that rights were routinely being violated last year. Christians were being harassed. Double standards have been in place for years. We're just the ones who catch these things on tape and expose what's going on in Dearborn. Does the mayor think that harassing Christians isn't a problem, and that it only becomes a problem when the harassment is exposed by Acts 17 and the city starts receiving complaints?

Since the mayor is so quick to give his thoughts about our intentions and motives, let me give you my outline of what I think led to our arrests.

(1) The city of Dearborn was terribly embarrassed by the negative publicity from last year's Arab Festival.

(2) Police were looking for an excuse to arrest us, so that they could portray us in a negative light.

(3) After receiving some bogus complaints from people who didn't want us dialoguing with Muslims, police saw their opportunity and decided to move in.

(4) They went after Negeen first, in order to keep her from filming our arrests.

(5) Since police can only charge someone with a misdemeanor if they witness the person breaking the law, police stood close to us and looked for a reason to arrest us.

(6) We weren't doing anything wrong, and they had no reason to arrest us.

(7) Police couldn't let us leave the festival, because they had already arrested Negeen. Unless they could justify the arrest by claiming that Negeen was part of a group that was causing problems, police were in trouble for violating her rights.

(8) Knowing that they had to justify Negeen's arrest, police were forced to arrest us, even though we hadn't done anything wrong.

(9) Since they had no evidence against us, police illegally seized our cameras, hoping that they would find some evidence against us in the footage.

(10) After reviewing the footage, they realized that we did absolutely nothing against festival rules or city, state, or federal laws.

(11) In order to defend the arrests, police and the mayor were forced to invent all kinds of stories about us screaming into the crowd, blocking a tent entrance, inciting a riot, etc.

(12) Although video evidence conclusively disproves these stories, the mayor and police department now have to defend them, for the only alternative is to acknowledge repeated violations of our Constitutional rights, targeting Christians in order to please Muslims, and lying in police reports and television interviews.

After watching the videos and listening to the interview, which version of events seems more plausible?

Sunday, July 25, 2010

A Call for Nabeel's Execution

Interesting comment from OurStyleZ on one of our YouTube videos:

My dear muslims....Im sure there is one lion living in America who knows how to track these guys down.......PLease deal with the case....Slit this guys nuts open and leave the dog belly up in the street....
Al Sayef Al MAslool Liman Sab Al-Rasoul!

The last part means "A drawn sword for him who left the prophet," so this is a call for Muslims to kill Nabeel.

It's in the comments section here.

Strangely, in another comment on a different video, OurStyleZ claims to be a Christian:

I am a christian who would like to thank the police for arresting this person who is promoting hate between Americans......
David Wood is a hate monger who should be charged and thrown in jail!

This was right before he said this:

Im so glad you got arrested it made my day!
:)
Is it going to stay in your record?

I can't figure out if this is a Muslim (sometimes practicing taqiyya) who wants his fellow Muslims to kill Nabeel or someone trying to cause trouble.

If it's the former, I'll say that we're not hard to find. We'll be in Dearborn for our pre-trial hearing next month. I'm sure we'll make a trip down to the festival area in case anyone is interested in dialogue. (In case anyone didn't notice, we're not scared of dying.)

***UPDATE*** Paul (who speaks Arabic) just sent me a text saying that "sab" can be translated as "leave" or as "curse." If it's the latter, the translation would read: "A drawn sword for him who cursed the prophet." In that case, the threat could be directed towards Nabeel or towards me.

David Wood and Mayor John C. O'Reilly on the Radio Tonight

Dearborn Mayor John C. O'Reilly has agreed to join me on the Bob Siegel Show tonight at 6:00 P.M. Eastern Standard Time (3:00 P.M. Pacific Time) to discuss the situation in Dearborn. Should be interesting. You can listen live here.

Mayor Agrees To Tell City's Side
Posted by Bob Siegel on Saturday, July 24, 2010 1:22:15 PM

Mayor John B. O'Reilly of Dearborn, Michigan has agreed to come on my radio program, along with David Wood, one of the Christians arrested while sharing the gospel to Muslims. The mayor will be offering a different interpretation of the events.

Program: The Bob Siegel Show
Date: Sunday, July, 25, 2010
Time: 3:00-4:00 PM Pacific Time
Station: KCBQ 1170 on the dial or KCBQ.com to listen live over the internet.
Call in toll free number: 1-888-344-1170
Source.

Saturday, July 24, 2010

Double Standards in Dearborn

It was a brilliant plan. Certain Muslims wanted to stop George Saieg's ministry from freely distributing materials at the Arab Festival. However, one can't simply make a law against Christians. The solution was to make a rule against open distribution, a rule that supposedly applied to everyone. Security, however, would only enforce the rule against Christians. Voila! A Christian ministry is shut down, and everyone thinks it's fair treatment!

Friday, July 23, 2010

Dearborn Arab Festival Video Timeline

We're going to be posting several more videos in the weeks to come, but I thought it would be helpful to give everyone a timeline, since there's been confusion about the order of events.

I. ARAB FESTIVAL 2009: SHARIA IN THE U.S.

At the 2009 Dearborn Arab Festival, Nabeel tried to ask a question at a booth that invited us to ask questions. The Muslims gave us permission to record the conversation (a fact which has been almost completely ignored by our critics). Ironically, Nabeel was asking a question about Surah 9:29 of the Qur'an, which calls for the subjugation of non-Muslims. Muslim security guards gave us their answer, by conspiring against us and physically assaulting us. Notice that they also assaulted Mary Jo Sharp, who was simply holding a camera.



II. NEGEEN'S ARREST

We returned to the Arab Festival this year. Since (a) security attacked us last year, (b) they tried to set us up, and (c) Muslims threatened to harm/kill us if we returned, we knew that we had better keep cameras rolling the entire time. Negeen's job was to film us from a distance, in case something went wrong. Once police had decided to arrest us, they realized that they had better get Negeen out of the picture, so that the arrests wouldn't be recorded. Police approached Negeen, ordered her to turn off her camera (illegal), put their hands on her (illegal), and arrested her when she hadn't broken any laws (illegal). In case anyone is wondering, no, United States citizens do not have to obey the orders of a police officer if the officer has no right to issue the order. (For those who asked, Negeen's testimony can be seen here.)



III. NABEEL'S DIALOGUE WITH HAKEEM

Since we didn't know Negeen had been arrested, we kept walking through the tent we were in. A young Muslim approached us with our cameras rolling, and then said he was going to sue us for recording him. (Strange, since he walked in front of our cameras.) Nabeel engaged him in dialogue, and everything was going smoothly within a few minutes. Police can even be seen actually doing their job (I'm surprised they were able to take time away from harassing Christians), when they told Muslims to take a step back from Nabeel. As we now know, however, they were already plotting to arrest us, and were looking for an excuse.



IV. POLICE TELL US WE'RE FINE

According to Dearborn Mayor John C. O'Reilly, police ordered us to break up our conversation, and we refused. We also deliberately blocked a tent exit in order to cause a scene. These were supposedly the reasons for our arrest. Apparently, Mayor O'Reilly didn't think our cameras picked up what police actually said. I asked police if we should move, and they said, "No, you're fine." I don't speak Dearbornese, so I didn't realize that "You're fine" means "Leave now or we'll arrest you."



V. DAVID'S ARREST

It seems that holding a camera in Dearborn is unofficially illegal. That's the only possible justification for having me arrested, since I was simply holding a camera. Later, of course, the Mayor realized that there are no laws on the books against filming a dialogue, so he had to invent a story about me blocking a tent entrance in order to justify my arrest. But those pesky video cameras of ours just don't lie.



VI. PAUL AND NABEEL'S ARREST

After police arrested me, they went for Paul and Nabeel. Notice how peacefully Nabeel was responding to the questions of Muslims, and how peacefully he reacted when police put him in handcuffs. This is quite different from the Nabeel we read about in the police report and Mayor's letter (i.e. the Nabeel who was screaming at a crowd and grew louder when police took him into custody).



VII. OUR POST-ARREST VIDEO

Shortly after we were released from jail, we recorded a video explaining what had happened. Many Muslims were rejoicing at our arrests and spreading all kinds of false accusations (more on this later). Nabeel made an important claim in this video, namely, that our stories would not change, while the stories of our critics would have to change in light of video footage. Apart from some minor details (e.g. Negeen seems to me to be less than 100 feet away, and we seem to have blurred the last two dialogues together in our minds--simple memory problems due to our cameras being taken way), our story is exactly the same. We were engaging in peaceful dialogue with Muslims when police arrested us. But what about the stories of our critics? What of all the claims that we were screaming at the crowd, that we were harassing Muslims, that we were inciting a riot, etc.? These stories are changing day by day, just as we said they would.



VIII. POLICE TAKE US INTO CUSTODY FOR HANDING OUT THE GOSPEL OF JOHN

Two days after our arrest, Paul, Negeen, and I returned to the Arab Festival, along with our friend Antonio. Paul and Antonio were distributing copies of the Gospel of John for less than three minutes when eight police officers surrounded them. Police also seized my camera (illegally) and took all of us into custody. When Antonio tried to call his pastor, police took his phone. They took us to their portable police station, photographed us, and wrote down all of our information. They told us that we would have to walk five blocks away from the festival if we wanted to distribute copies of the Gospel. If we dared hand anything out again within five blocks of the festival, we would be taken to jail.



We have several more videos of the festival that we will be posting, but this is a fair summary for now. I invite all of our readers to link to this summary to help us refute the lies that are being spread.

Thursday, July 22, 2010

The Qur'an and the (supposed) Big Bang Theory: In Comparison to Ancient Philosophy and Pre-Islamic (pagan) Religions

This post includes an essay on the Qur'an and Cosmogony with a focus on the Big Bang theory, which I wrote five years ago. The purpose was obviously to debunk the various exponents of Islam (e.g. Bucaille, Harun Yahya and Osama Abdallah) who propagate their wishful imagination to what they deem as scientific evidence for the Qur'an.

Since then I have greatly expanded my insight into the matter and am currently preparing a more detailed work, which I may post in small parts or in a lengthy essay in near future.

Notice that my intention here is not to debunk the improbability of the Qur'anic view (that will derive in a later post) but to point out that the Qur'anic picture of the cosmological origin was a view that flourished centuries prior to the rise of Islam, and which the authors and composers of the Qur'an appear to have borrowed from circulating teaching or sources, sometimes (possibly) even word for word.

To assess the cosmology of the Qur’an our study has to begin with its concept of cosmogony, the origins. Here Muslims usually refer to Sura 21: 30:

Have not those who disbelieve known that the heavens and the earth were of one piece, then We parted them, and we made every living thing of water? Will they not then believe? (Sura 21: 30)’

The joining and separation of the heavens and earth is according to a range of Muslim writers a prediction of the modern the Big Bang theory; Bucaille, expounds upon this:

The reference to a separation process (fatq) of a primary single mass whose elements were initially fused together (ratq). It must be noted that in Arabic ‘fatq’ is the action of breaking, diffusing, separating, and that ‘ratq’ is the action of fusing or binding together elements to a make a homogenous whole.’ (1)

Yet the text itself does not follow Bucaille’s overall line of thought! The phrase: ‘Have not those who disbelieve known…’ implies that the Qur’an describes and refers to a concept that was already familiar in the era prior to Islam (2); hence in all correctness we may need to leave out any notion of modern scientific discoveries, and consider what ancient science and belief had already concluded.

Cosmogony in Ancient Religions:

A range of ancient religions e.g. the Hermopolitan (3) appear to describe the origin of the universe as a primordial universal egg. In the Hindu writings, the Laws of Manu, creation begins with a seed placed in water. The seed grows into a golden egg, which divides into two halves, which initially forms into heaven and earth. (4) In the Upanishads, existence suddenly begins, gradually grows into an egg and when the egg has remained still for a year, it is split open, out of which the two parts appear, which initially became the heaven and the earth. (5)

The resemblance is obvious; yet interestingly, the Laws of Manu and the Upanishads provide a description which is much closer to modern science than the Qur’an, as both describe a chronology which includes the state from singularity to inflation. (6)

Following the thought of Bucaille therefore, the Qur’anic cosmogony depends upon an external and much more detailed theory, which reveals further scientific predictions; this does not render the Qur’an as necessarily being miraculous.

The ancient Mesopotamian and Babylonian writings contain the same concept, as is the case with Gilgamesh: ‘…when the heavens had been separated from the earth and the earth had been delimited from the heavens.’ (7)

Furthermore, the Emma Elish, describes the god Marduk creating the heaven and earth by separating the women Tiamat in two halves, which become the vault of the sky and the earth; next he fixes the courses of the stars in the sky. (8)

Cosmogony in Ancient Philosophy:

Yet the concept of one primary entity separating was not confined to the world of mythology only; the Greeks and the Romans speculated in the same lines but transferred the concept to the category of science. Aristotle (384-322 BC) in describing the proposition of Anaxagoras (500-428 BC), writes:

That is why they make statements like ‘everything was originally mixed together…others talk in this context of combination and separation…So the reason they say that everything is mixed in everything is because, in their view, everything comes from everything. (9)

This is certainly in line with Bucaille and Haruna, who applied the terminology of mixing and fusing and then separating. (10) If the earth was not presented in the original entity, the Qur’an might have been closely in line with Anaxagoras; yet the separation of the earth does not indicate that, or else the passage would render a clear description of a mere entity exclusive of its reference to heaven and earth.

Hence in the Qur’an it is not a cosmological globe that separates but the actual heaven and earth. This nevertheless highly contradicts even the most simple about obvious cosmological observations.

The plausibility is also that the reference to the heavens while still smoke in Sura 41: implies that the earth originated from the same material. Yet nothing in the passage explicitly reveals so; furthermore we would assume then that the earth would distance itself from the smoke, yet the earth and smoke are brought to together, leaving us with no explanation for its occurrence.
In addition to a fused universe Anaxagoras and the Greeks also considered this mixing of the universe to occur in one place, as one entity before they separated.

Interestingly, Anaxagoras refers to the mixture as being comprehended by air and an element called aether.’ (11) Aether, was the mysterious matter of the universe, often referred to as fire or fiery fume (12); whether this can be interpreted into terminology such as gas or primordial gaseous clouds, (13) if we really wish to speculate, is probably overstating the matter, at least when considering the thought of Anaxagoras. (14)

Interestingly however, according to Zeller, various ancient philosophers considered this element, usually fire and air to be mixed inside a fiery universal glob. The globe exploded and the fire collected in fiery circles from which the stellar bodies derived. (15) According to Anaxagoras the earth was implausible at this stage, rather the separation occurs from rotation in which all matter gets included starts forming and are brought into orbit. (16) Compared to modern science, the analogy is still distant but yet surprisingly accurate. (17)

Yet, the most significant philosopher when it concerns the cosmology of the Qur’an and its use of ancient science is Lucretius. (18) His postulate involves the mixture and separation of the universe, but also in details describes a theory in which the role and contribution of the atoms is separating the heaven and earth and so expanding the cosmos.

As to the Big Bang, Lucretius describes a time in which nothing existed except for a congregated mass of atoms, compressed into one small entity:

At that time the sun’s bright disc was not to be seen here, soaring loft and lavishing light, nor the stars that crowd the far-flung firmament, nor sea nor sky, nor earth, nor air nor anything in the likeness of things we know – nothing but a hurricane raging in a newly congregated mass of atoms of every sort.’ (19)

Lucretius further describes a state of chaos and turmoil in which the atoms collide:
‘From their disharmony sprang conflict, which maintained a turmoil in their interspaces, courses, unions, thrusts, impacts, collisions and motions.’ (20)

It is vital to consider that Lucretius envisages this early state of the universe to be a ‘newly congregated mass of atoms of every sort’; in other words a previous cause must have brought this congregated mass into its shape and function. Yet at this point the universe is still a congregated mass which contains the entire universe, the earth, the heaven, the stars, the sun and the moon, and possibly its space.

The next stage of the universe is the combination of atoms with other atoms which causes what Lucretius calls the ‘main features of a world’ to be composed. This might explain why the Qur’an refers to the heaven and earth rather than a cosmological globe. According to Lucretius, it is from this primordial state, that the separation of heaven and the earth and the expansion of the space between them take place:

‘…they (the atoms) began, in fact, to separate the heights of heaven from the earth, to single out the sea as a receptacle for water detached from the mass and to set apart the fires of pure and isolated ether. In the first place all the particles of earth, because they were heavy and intertangled, collected in the middle and took up the undermost stations. The more closely they cohered and clung together, the more they squeezed out the atoms that went to the making of sea and stars, sun and moon and the outer walls of the great world.’ (21)

Lucretius therefore describes the separation of heaven and earth as being caused by the composition of the primordial universe; particularly by the atoms.

The similarities between these sources and the Qur’an are significant; yet the Qur’an provides little insight into to the state of this primordial entity and the cause of separation.
Later commentators e.g. Kathir suggests the air between the heaven and earth was the cause, (22) while Mujahid suggests that the heaven began as smoke gusting out of the earth. (13) If is the case, then the Qur’an does not follow in line with Anaxagoras’ exclusion of the primordial earth. Following Mujahid however, and the reference to the earth and smoke (Sura 41: 11), the Qur’an certainly follows a range of philosophers on the centrality of the earth and its contribution to the cosmological structure. In addition the reference to smoke also suggests that the Qur’an is depending upon the earlier Greek theories of the elements, rather than the atomic theory of Lucretius. (24)

Yet again I suggest Harun Yahya, Osama Abdallah among others to remove from their websites their distorted attempts to apply modern science as a means to prove the Qur'an as miracolous and furthermore, I hope these Islamic proponents will also reveal the honesty to admit that Qur'anic science did not originate with the Qur'an but pre-Islamic sources, such as the 'Separation of the heaven and earth' which is not a prediction of the Big Bang but which the contemporaries of Muhammad by the use of the same wording applied to an actual separation of the heaven and earth, typically with the earth as the main cosmological centre.

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Bibliography and sources:


1. Bucaille, 1975: 139; see also Harun Yahya, The Scientific Miracles of the Qur’an, Al-Attique Publishers, 2000:21-2. Yahya elaborates on Bucaille’s theory by suggesting that the verb fataqa implies the destruction or tearing apart of something to create something new. See also Muhammad Assadi, The Unifying theory of everything: Koran and Nature’s Testimony (http://members.aol.com/silence004/koran.html)

2. Tafsir Ibn Kathir, Abridged Vol. 6, Abridged by a group of Scholars under the supervision of Shaykh Safiur-Rahman Al-Mubarakpuri, Riyadh, Houston, New York, Lahore, Darussalam, 2000: 440.

3. The Hermopolitan cosmogony is depicted in several versions, one being a cosmological egg which was placed on the Primeval Hill by a goose from which Re appeared; see Mircea Eliade, A History of Religious Ideas: From the Stone Age to the Eleusinian Mysteries, vol.1, St James’s Place, London: Collins, 1979:17-8)

4. G. Buhler (translation), Sacred Books of the East, XXV: 'The Laws of Manu,' 1, 5-16 (Oxford 1886), pp.2-8
(http://alexm.here.ru/mirrors/www.enteract.com/jwalz/Eliade/057.html)

5. S. Radhakrishnan (editor and translator), The Principal Upanishads: Chandogya Upanishad, III, 19, 1-2, New York: Harper & Row, 1953, PP. 151-2, 399, 447-9 (http://alexm.here.ru/mirrors/www.enteract.com/jwalz/Eliade/058.html).
See also Dr. E. Zeller, A History of Greek Philosophy: From the earliest Period to the Time of Socrates, Vol. I, London: Longmans Green and Co, 1881: 115; the Greek myth in which Chronos-Heraclis produces a giant egg which is divided, from which the heaven and earth originate.

6. Alan H. Guth & Paul J. Steinhardt, ‘The Inflationary Universe’ in (ed.) David H. Levy, The Scientific ‘American: Book of Cosmos’, London, Oxford and Basingstoke: Macmillan, 2000:361-62; the theory implies that the universe in a brief period of suddenly by some ‘extraordinary’ cause expanded, while the entire universe in its pre-inflationary state had been compressed into to a tiny volume.

7. Gilgamesh, Enkidu and the netherworld: 1-26 (Version A, From Nibru, Urim and elsewhere) in Babylonia and Ancient Near Eastern Texts, by Kenneth Sublett, Piney.com, Hohenwald, Tennessee; the text describes a multiple number of heavens and excludes the usual mythology (http://www.piney.com/BabGilgEnkid.html)

8. Mircea Eliade, AHistory of Religious Ideas: From the Stone Age to the Eleusinian Mysteries, vol.1, St James’s Place, London: Collins, 1979:71-2

9. Aristotle: Physics, A New Translation by Robin Waterfield, Oxford: University Press, 1999:17

10. see Sura 21: 30; the theory of Bucailleism implies that the passage predicts fusing and separation

11. Arthur Fairbanks, ed. and trans. The First Philosophers of Greece, London: K. Paul, Trench, Trubner, 1898: 235 (Hanover Historical Text Projects) http://history.hanover.edu/project.html

12. See Aristotle, he applies the same terminology to a mysterious cloudy material, such as vapour and ether, similar to the Qur’ans reference of dukhan, which Muslim authors claim predicts primordial gasseous clouds (Aristotle, Aristotle Meteorologica, I. iii, translated by H.D.P. Lee, London: William Heinemann, Ltd & Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 1962: 19-23, 31.

13. Fred Adams & Greg Laughlin, The Five Ages of the Universe: Inside the Physics of Eternity, USA, New York: The Free Press, 1999: 34-40; the entire galactic host of the Universe was originally composed and formed in clouds of hot gas.

14. This resembles the claim that the Qur’anic reference to dukhan is a prediction of the primordial gaseous clouds; the main problem however remains that the gaseous clouds did not derive from a central earth, but the other way round.

15. Zellar, 1881: 267; this was the view of Anaxagoras, but other philosophers, such as Plutarch and Hippolytus held the same view. Anaximander, however, applied this concept upon the earth and the heaven; he envisaged the sun, moon, stars and their circles to have originated from a fiery sphere that split from the earth; see Arthur Fairbanks, Plut. Strom. 2 ; Dox. 579, 1898: 14, 16

16. Arthur Fairbanks, 1898:241

17. Adams and Laughlin, 1999:35; the theory proposes matter that was pulled together into galactic structured by gravity, and then endowed with rotation.

18. Lucretius, The Nature of the Universe, (translated by R.E. Latham), Penguin Books 1957, ‘The Nature of the
Universe’ was written 50 BC, slightly nearer the ear of Islam, and reveals a cosmogony that has been significantly developed since Anaxagoras and Aristotle, as ancient postulates and the atomic theory are combined. See also 184-5; while earlier cosmogonies typically described the world being created from the elements; Lucretius rejects this view and combines the atomism concept with the concept of separation.

19. Lucretius, 1957: 184; Here Lucretius alludes slightly to Anaxagoras who proposed the inauguration of a small rotating motion, while Lucretius describes an atomic mass effected by a raging hurricane; considering modern science, this ancient postulate is remarkable. Furthermore Lucretius predicts an original fused entity. Comparing the picture to modern theories the picture does not resemble cosmological singularity but apart from earths existence, rather the later proposed cloud of radiation, from which the atoms and particles suddenly exonerated. See also Heather Couper & Nigel Henbest, To the ends of the Universe, UK, London: Dorling Kindersley, 1998: 24-7). The Qur’an makes no reference to the nature of this entity, such as Lucretius; yet the principle remains the same, this entity is combined by heaven and earth.

20. Lucretius, 1957: 184; According to modern scientific postulates this closely resembles the interval period between the Big Bang and the Cosmological Inflation; Couper & Henbest, 1998; 20-3: see also Carl Sagan, Cosmos, UK, London: Book Club Associates, 1981: 218-235, despite from the fact that the earth was not present at that stage of the universe.

21. Lucretius, 1957: 184-5; this is where the Qur’an comes in having excluded all the details; hence the reference of Sura 21: 30 refers to a already detailed description of cosmogony. Here it have to be noted however, that Lucretius’ postulate is only an option among many

22. Tafsir Ibn Kathir, Abridged Volume 6, Abridged by a group of Scholars under the supervision of Shaykh Safiur-Rahman Al-Mubarakpuri, Riyadh, Houston, New York, Lahore, Darussalam, 2000: 440-1

23. Mujahid commented on Allah’s statement 41: 9-12 which reveals the earth to be created and made inhabitable prior to the forming and rising of the heavens (compare to 21: 30-2). Based on Sura 41 Mujahid states that the earth was created first: ‘...and when He created the earth, smoke burst out of it.’ According to Mujahid this is why Allah turned to the heaven ‘when it was smoke’ Sura 41: 11’ Tafsir Ibn Kathir, vol.1, 2000: 180

24. Most Greeks held on to the a universe consisting of the basic elements, Democritus (470-380 BC) Epicurus (341-270 BC) and later Lucretius (95-55 BC) held on to the atomic universe; they rejected the significance of the elements; yet this theory remained a minority view and almost vanished until early fourteen century, when it became superior; see Isaac Asimov, Exploring the Earth and the Cosmos, UK, Middlesex: Penguin Books Ltd: 1982: 265-8 93. See also Lucretius who stated that the elements are depended upon the atoms, and mocked those who believed the raw material to be air, water or fire (Lucretius, 1957: 47, 93)


http://debunkingquranicscience.blogspot.com/2010/07/quran-and-big-bang-theory-in-comparsion.html

Arab Festival 2010: The Missing Footage!

Our critics are getting desperate. Just a few days ago, it seemed quite reasonable to some to believe that police arrested us for harassing and screaming at Muslims, for blocking a tent entrance, for refusing to obey a police order to disperse. But video footage is powerful, and for a few days there was a deafening silence from those who love to condemn us. But our critics regrouped quickly, and rapidly spread the rumor that our illegal activities occurred between Negeen's arrest and Nabeel's final dialogue. There was, after all, a gap of several minutes. Surely this was long enough for Nabeel to incite a riot? Unfortunately for our critics, we were recording then as well, and we have the footage. Here is Nabeel's dialogue with a Muslim named Hakeem:



We bear no ill will towards Hakeem. We understand that he was upset, and that it can be difficult to remain calm while discussing issues of eternal significance with someone who openly proclaims a view contrary to Islam. The point of the video is to refute our critics.

Sadly, we know that more accusations will come. "Ah, but just before all of this, Nabeel was screaming at people and David was causing a scene!" We're happy to keep posting more and more footage, until the deceptive lips of the mayor, the police department, and others are utterly silenced.

ACLU Weighs in on Our Arrests

Just when you thought the ACLU didn't like Christians!

There's a good article in the Michigan Messenger that presents feedback on our case from the ACLU. Here's an excerpt:

. . . Michael Steinberg, the legal director for the ACLU of Michigan, told the Messenger via email, “Based solely on the videotape, it appears that the man encouraging others to convert to Christianity was engaged in speech protected by the First Amendment. The videotape suggests that the man who was arrested was not harassing the people with whom he was speaking, nor was he inciting a riot; rather, he was engaged in the type of free exchange of ideas about religion that is valued in a free society. The man’s message may not have been popular at this particular festival, but the Constitution protects unpopular speech as well as popular speech.”

Steinberg also says that what happened on Sunday, June 20 — when the same missionaries were shooed off a public sidewalk and told they had to be at least five blocks away to hand out literature — looks like an abuse of authority as well.

“If it was being distributed on public streets outside the area reserved for the festival,” he said, “then it was protected First Amendment activity because public streets are quintessential public forums where protection of freedom of speech is strongest.”

He also noted that “videotaping police officers in public – especially when documenting perceived police misconduct – is activity protected by the Constitution.”

Dan Ray, a professor of constitutional law at Cooley Law School in Ann Arbor, agrees. “If any local authority told the religious group that it could only distribute its literature five blocks away,” he said, “that’s a clear First Amendment violation.” As a legal question, he said, this was “not even a close call.”

The Dearborn Police Department did not return calls seeking comment for this article. Read More.

Monday, July 19, 2010

David Wood's Arrest at Dearborn Arab Festival

According to Dearborn Mayor John C. O'Reilly:

At the time he was arrested on Friday, June 18, Mr. Wood had gathered a large crowd around him, blocking a key access point between the tents. The crowd was forced to grow bigger solely because people could not pass. Those who created this public danger did so with the knowledge that they were violating the laws because they wanted to be arrested while their cohorts were actively recording the event for posting on the web. They knew that they could inflame the passions of viewers who would be taken in by their misrepresentation of what was really going on. Source.

Fortunately, video footage trumps the Mayor's lies. Pay close attention to the Muslim who says, "Man I love Dearborn Police." (I'll note here, however, that this could be a sarcastic comment. I can't be sure, but given the number of Muslims who cheered at our arrests, I suspect the intention was genuine.)



And here's what happened according to the City of Dearborn's website:

Public safety became an issue for both members of Acts 17 Apologetics and the gathering crowd. The four (4) members of Acts 17 Apologetics chose to escalate their behavior, which appeared well-orchestrated and deliberate, and chose not to follow the directions being given to them by the responding officers. The behavior of these individuals drew and incited a large crowd to a point where they were in violation of City of Dearborn Misdemeanor Ordinances of Breach of Peace and Failure to Obey the Lawful Order of a Police Officer. They were arrested. Upon their arrest, the crowd dispersed without further action being needed. Source.

Ancient Evidence against Acts 17

I just read about the discovery of an ancient manuscript over at Lydia's blog. Since this has implications for our ministry, I'm reposting Lydia's intro along with the ancient document.

***********************************************************************

Those of you who have been following the outrageous treatment of Christian missionaries in Dearborn, MI, through my coverage at W4 or at the blog of Acts 17 ministries may or may not be aware that the Acts 17 guys and their friends have had a fair bit of their time wasted--on blogs, on Facebook, etc.--answering Christian "friends" who accuse them of being "too confrontational," etc., and hence getting themselves in trouble. (Never mind the rule of law, the freedom of religion, the mandate to proclaim the gospel, and all that. We're busy proving how hard we can be on fellow Christians who have the audacity to run afoul of the sharia police.)

Anyway, I cannot reveal here how the following came into my possession. I will only say, for the record, that I did not write it. I wouldn't want to take credit for something that isn't my own.

Don't forget to note the acronym at the end...

***********************************************************************


[The following document, written in Koine Greek on a surprisingly intact sheet of fine vellum, was recently found in a drawer in the British Museum, where it had lain uncatalogued for an unknown time. Scholarly opinion is divided, but some experts believe that it may have been a document that was considered and then rejected for inclusion in the fourteenth chapter of Acts. It is translated here for the first time.]

Dear Brother Paul,

We were grieved to hear of the commotion caused when you and Barnabas were here last month. Though we are, of course, grateful that you suffered no bodily harm, we feel it our duty to point out that what you were doing was in every way calculated to inflame strong passions and to incite violence. Because we love you as brethren, we feel it necessary to “show unto you a more excellent way,” lest your actions should cause a breach in the excellent relations we enjoy with the Jewish community here and in our sister cities to the south, Lystra and Derbe.

First, it is reported that you and Barnabas entered a synagogue. You of all people must understand that this placed you in a sensitive position. It is one thing to speak on a public street – sensitively, of course – but it is quite another to go forcing one’s way into the very house of worship of our Jewish friends. Ask yourselves: what would Jesus do? Would he have caused trouble in the Temple itself?

Second, it is reported that when you and Barnabas had entered the synagogue, you began openly preaching the gospel. Brethren, this is out of character with the behavior of our blessed Lord and Saviour, who, as the prophet Isaiah foretold, “opened not his mouth” – a moving description that we have taken as our motto for the Ministerial Society.

Third, it is reported that you engaged in this activity for an extended period of time, speaking boldly and with confidence. We entreat you: was there any need for this? Was there not a time and a place for sharing your convictions that would have been more compatible with the excellent advice you yourself have been known to give from time to time, that “all things might be done decently and in order”?

Under the circumstances, it is no wonder that the civil authorities and a sizeable portion of the religious population joined forces to prevent your actions. Without seeming to condone any violence you might have suffered, we feel compelled to point out that we in the Ministerial Society have never been the focus of such actions from either the civil or the religious direction. Indeed, several of the leading Rabbis here in Iconium have assured us that they have not the least problem with the manner in which we conduct ourselves.

This manner of conduct we earnestly commend to you. There is no need for you to suffer for your faith, whether out of misplaced piety or a juvenile desire for public attention. Our God, who is able to make the rocks cry out His praises, neither requires nor is glorified by brash attempts to proclaim His word in unseasonable circumstances. It is better – safer, and, we think, wiser – to remember the words of the preacher, that there is “a time for silence.”

Sincerely,

M. W. T. Rollos, secretary
Worship, Iconium! Ministerial Peace Society
“... ουκ ανοιγει το στομα αυτου”

Friday, July 16, 2010

Nabeel Qureshi and Paul Arrested at Dearborn Arab Festival (Video Footage)

You've seen many Muslims take delight in the fact that we were arrested at the Dearborn Arab Festival. Now take a good look at what we were arrested for. Then ask yourself, "Why would Muslims be so happy that Christians were arrested for peacefully sharing the Gospel?"

Also take a close look at the accusations of the Dearborn Police, Mayor John C. O'Reilly, certain local Christian leaders, etc. Then ask yourself, "Why are so many people lying about Acts 17?"



“An illegal arrest is an assault and battery. The person so attempted to be restrained of his or her liberty has the same right to use force in defending him or herself as he or she would in repelling any other assault and battery.” (State v. Robinson, 145 ME. 77, 72 ATL. 260).

“Each person has the right to resist an unlawful arrest. In such a case, the person attempting the arrest stands in the position of a wrongdoer and may be resisted by the use of force, as in self- defense.” (State v. Mobley, 240 N.C. 476, 83 S.E. 2d 100).

“One may come to the aid of another being unlawfully arrested, just as he may where one is being assaulted, molested, raped or kidnapped. Thus it is not an offense to liberate one from the unlawful custody of an officer, even though he may have submitted to such custody, without resistance.” (Adams v. State, 121 Ga. 16, 48 S.E. 910).

Muslim Mother Receives Zero Jail-Time for Killing Daughter

This is a rather complicated case. I originally posted this thinking it was more clear-cut, but I did some background research and found that there is more to this story: possible PTSD, self-defense, etc. This is big news in Canada, though, and people are deliberating whether or not the judgment has anything to do with honor killings and Islamophobiaphobia. What do you think? I'm now leaning more towards not honor killing, but I'm interested in your thoughts.



Calgary Herald

CALGARY - The Calgary mother who killed her teenage daughter by strangling her with a scarf more than three years ago will not have to spend a day in jail, a judge ruled on Thursday.

But, in suspending the sentence of Aset Magomadova and placing her on probation for three years, Court of Queen's Bench Justice Sal LoVecchio said the penalty can still meet the ends of justice.

"At first blush (a suspended sentence) may sound like a get out of jail free card. It is not," emphasized the judge.

"The court has said the act in question does not merit a period of incarceration. What the court has done is reserved or to use the word of the statute, 'suspended' judgment on that point for a period of time on conditions. If the conditions are satisfied, then the individual will not be sentenced. If they are breached, the individual will be brought back to the court to be dealt with further."

Magomadova, 40, a refugee from the wartorn country of Chechnya, was originally charged with second-degree murder for killing her daughter Aminat, 14, on Feb. 26, 2007, at their Calgary home.

But LoVecchio deemed she did not intend to kill her, even though such an act required at least 2 1/2 minutes of continuous strangulation to cause death, and convicted her last October of the lesser included offence of manslaughter. READ MORE

Negeen's Arrest at Dearborn Arab Festival

Here's the video footage from Negeen's camera while she was being assaulted by Dearborn Police. In any other city, in any other state, police officers would recognize her Constitutional rights. But this is Dearborn. They can accuse a Christian of anything, and violate her rights in any way they see fit.

If this doesn't make your blood boil, nothing will.



“An illegal arrest is an assault and battery. The person so attempted to be restrained of his or her liberty has the same right to use force in defending him or herself as he or she would in repelling any other assault and battery.” (State v. Robinson, 145 ME. 77, 72 ATL. 260).

“Each person has the right to resist an unlawful arrest. In such a case, the person attempting the arrest stands in the position of a wrongdoer and may be resisted by the use of force, as in self- defense.” (State v. Mobley, 240 N.C. 476, 83 S.E. 2d 100).

“One may come to the aid of another being unlawfully arrested, just as he may where one is being assaulted, molested, raped or kidnapped. Thus it is not an offense to liberate one from the unlawful custody of an officer, even though he may have submitted to such custody, without resistance.” (Adams v. State, 121 Ga. 16, 48 S.E. 910).

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Brief Update from Nabeel

Hello all--

Sorry we haven't been able to share more information with you recently. Things got pretty hectic pretty quick. I am currently in Florida with my Youth at Bible Camp, so I haven't had the time to post much since I've gotten here. But I have about 15 minutes right now, so here goes.

On Sunday night when we went to Dearborn to speak, my flight arrived late so we arrived at our spot about half an hour after anticipated. Some Christians were there waiting for us to encourage us, and they told us that 3 cop cars had been parked there and were waiting for us. They must have left, though, because I didn't see them. News Channel 7 was there (ABC affiliate, I believe) and they started asking us questions on the camera. When we stood on the street to let people come and talk to us, many people drove by and honked and waved, some people drove by and glared at us, but only one person stopped. Majed Moughni, a Muslim running for US Congress, stopped his car with his family waiting inside. He came up to us and greeted us very warmly, and then clearly stated for the camera (I'm paraphrasing, btw): "What the Mayor is doing to you all is very wrong. He does not speak for all the City of Dearborn. He should apologize to you, you have every right to do what you did." David and I were very surprised by Moughni's show of support - it seems to me that he has more to lose than to gain by siding with us, but he did so all the same. He has written a few notes on his Facebook account indicating his support for us as well.

The next day, Monday morning, we arrived at the courthouse early and there were many believers and media outlets there. Since there were, of course, multiple people on the dockett for the day, we got to see Judge Somers's style. He was exceedingly kind to virtually everyone who walked up. I mean, really - I've seen some judges in action before, but this guy was super nice in his demeanor and attitude, and his judgements were fair. But then we got up there, and it was like a light switch. He appeared antagonistic towards our attorney from the get-go, intimating that he was against many of his motions. (I'm no lawyer, nor am I even remotely familiar with legal processes, so forgive me if I speak incorrectly.) He even appeared to deny Rob's (our attorney) request for a bill of particulars, a detailed account of what exactly we were charged for. I thought that was extremely important and a necessity in this trial, but the judge acted as if it was unheard of. So, not looking good on that front. We'll see what happens.


Three cool things happened, though. Turns out Moughni is an attorney, so he was with Rob Muise in the courtroom the whole time, apparently just giving Rob his input and showing him around the court. So, at least on Monday, we had a Christian lawyer and a Muslim lawyer on our side :-) Praise God for that! Another cool thing was that Representative Tom McMillan from Michigan state legislature was present and expressed his support for us - praise the Lord! The last noteworthy thing that happened was that the City Prosecutor agreed to give us back our footage on Wednesday (today). The court didn't mandate it, so it seems easy to back out of the agreement if they should choose to, but they did say at court on Monday that they should be able to give it back this week. By the way, the express reason given by the City Prosecutor that we didn't have our cameras back on Monday was that the detective in charge of our case was on vacation. Go figure :-)

Court dates were set: August 3rd for a motion hearing (we're not going to have to be there for that) and August 30th for our pre-trial (which we will have to go to). Please pray for us!

Here is a short clip we put together (granted, in an extreme hurry) at ABN with a brief recap of what happened at the arraignment:



***UPDATE FROM DAVID*** I hear that our cameras have finally been returned to our lawyers. Since plane tickets are way too expensive, Paul and I are going to drive to Michigan tonight. We'll be able to examine the cameras in the morning to see if the footage has been tampered with. If we've got our footage, we should be able to start posting videos tomorrow.

***UPDATE FROM NABEEL*** Just got a call from David in Michigan. He's looking through the footage right now... looks like it's there, but he's checking to see if it's all there. We've got even better news to share with you, but we have to wait 'til we have it all together to post online :-) Keep coming back for updates!

Monday, July 12, 2010

O'Really, Mayor O'Reilly? -- A Response to the Mayor of Dearborn

I should probably add the words: "With all due respect..."



P.S. We had to change the URL for the video; please update your links!

Sunday, July 11, 2010

Hogan Elijah Hagbard Versus Ayaz: The Qur'an and the World of Ants

I don't wish to break the present flow concerning the dangerous situation in USA (may God bless David Wood and the team and their struggle to stand up for the truth and freedom; my prayer is with you guys), hence I will just provide the link of an online written debate between myself and Ayaz (a UK Muslim) on the Qur'an, the Bible and science in relation to the Ant.

Ayaz and myself debated publically in 2008 in UK on the topic: 'The Bible and the Qur'an: Which is from God', and contemplate an imminent debate this year on the divinity and humanity of Jesus.

Our online written debate can be viewed here:

http://debunkingquranicscience.blogspot.com/2010/07/ant-in-bible-and-quran-dialogue-between.html

Arraignment Tomorrow

I've been contacted by some brothers who would like to be at our arraignment tomorrow. Here's the info:

State of Michigan
19th Judicial District
16077 Michigan Avenue
Dearborn, MI 48126

We'll be there at 8:00 A.M., though we might be waiting a while.

Saturday, July 10, 2010

ABC Report on Our Arrests

This was a fair and balanced report.

For those of you who've been asking, I'll start posting responses to the Mayor later today.

Thursday, July 8, 2010

State Representative Tom McMillin Calls on Attorney General to Investigate Our Arrests

World Net Daily--A lawmaker in Michigan is calling on the state attorney general to investigate the arrests of four Christians at a recent Arab festival in the city of Dearborn, saying they were just "engaging festivalgoers in conversation about religion on public property."

The call comes from state Rep. Tom McMillin, who has introduced a resolution to that effect.

His concern is over the arrests of four people during the Arab Festival in Dearborn, where police have been accused of enforcing Islamic law.

The officers arrested the Christian missionaries and illegally confiscated their video cameras, which were being used to record the events, according to the Thomas More Law Center of Ann Arbor, Mich., which is representing the defendants.

Officials in the police department with the city of Dearborn declined to comment to WND.

"Both the constitution of Michigan and the United States guarantee the right of every person to enjoy free speech and practice their religion freely, just as these men were doing," McMillin, R-Rochester Hills, said.

"Those rights can't be just pushed aside for political correctness or to accommodate certain circumstances or locations," he said.

McMillin has been in touch with the "Dearborn Four" and has agreed to attend their arraignment in Dearborn on July 12 as a show of solidarity.

"These men should not be punished for exercising their inalienable rights," McMillin said. Read more.

Tony Costa vs. Bassam Zawadi: "Was Muhammad Assured of His Salvation?"

You don't want to miss this one. Tony and Bassam are two of the best debaters out there, and this is definitely an interesting topic. On a different note, I know both of them and I think they'll get along quite well if they hang out for a while. I suspect Tony and Bassam will become good friends (provided Bassam continues to reinterpret Qur'an 5:51!). For those of us who can't be there, I'll post videos here as soon as they're available.

July 12 Arraignment of Four Christian Missionaries Arrested at the Dearborn, Michigan Arab Festival

ANN ARBOR, MI – The arraignment of four Christian missionaries on criminal charges will take place on Monday, July 12, 2010 at 8:00 a.m. in the 19th Judicial District Court located at 16077 Michigan Avenue in Dearborn, Michigan. This is the next step in what has been described as police enforcement of Sharia law in a city dominated by a large Muslim population.

To the jeers and shouts of “Allah Akbar” by the Muslim crowd, the four Christian missionaries were arrested and thrown in jail on June 18, 2010 by Dearborn Police officers at the Annual Arab International Festival held in Dearborn. One of the arrested missionaries was Dr. Nabeel Qureshi, MD, who was engaged in peaceful dialogue with several Muslim youths. The other three missionaries, who were merely videotaping the conversation, had their cameras and other equipment illegally seized before police arrested them as well.

Police refused requests by the missionaries to view the video at the scene of their arrest, which the missionaries claimed would completely exonerate them of any wrongdoing.

The Thomas More Law Center, a national public interest law firm based in Ann Arbor, Michigan is representing all of the Christian missionaries. Because District Judge Mark W. Somers required that all four defendants personally appear before him for the arraignment, the Law Center assisted with the costs of their travel from different parts of the country.

Richard Thompson, President and Chief Counsel of the Thomas More Law Center, commented, “It’s evident that the Dearborn Police department was more interested in placating Muslims than obeying our Constitution. These Christians were exercising their Constitutional rights to free speech and the free exercise of religion, but apparently in a city where the Muslim population seems to dominate the political apparatus, Sharia law trumps our Constitution.”

Thus far, police and prosecutors have refused to return the illegally seized cameras and video tapes. They have also refused to provide the Law Center with the police reports of the incident despite repeated requests.

Arrested on charges of Breach of the Peace are Negeen Mayel, Dr. Nabeel Qureshi, Paul Rezkalla and David Wood. Mayel, an eighteen-year old female whose parents emigrated from Afghanistan and a recent convert from Islam to Christianity, was also charged with failure to obey a police officer’s orders. She was at least 100 feet away and videotaping Qureshi’s discussion with the Muslim youths when police seized her camera.

Thompson added, “Not all police officers approve of the way their department treated these Christians.”

Robert Muise, Senior Trial Counsel with the Law Center, will represent the Christian missionaries at the arraignment on Monday. Source.

Wednesday, July 7, 2010

Dearborn Muslims Mourn Death of Terrorist

Mohammed Hussein Fadlallah was the spiritual leader of Hezbollah, and was responsible for the 1983 terrorist attack against the U.S. Marine barracks and the U.S. embassy in Beirut, which killed more than 300 people. Fadlallah has praised terrorist attacks against Israel, and has been deemed a terrorist by the U.S. government. Not surprisingly, many U.S. Muslims are mourning his death. But which city is mourning him most of all? If you guessed "Dearborn," you've been paying attention to our recent blog posts.

DETROIT — Three suburban Detroit Muslim worship centres plan to hold a total of six services to mourn the loss of one of Shiite Islam's highest authorities.

Services will be held nightly from Tuesday through Sunday for the Grand Ayatollah Mohammed Hussein Fadlallah. The 75-year-old cleric died Sunday in Lebanon after a long illness and was buried Tuesday.

The Detroit-area services will rotate among the Islamic Institute of Knowledge in Dearborn, Islamic House of Wisdom in Dearborn Heights and Islamic Center of America in Dearborn.

Imam Mohammad Ali Elahi of the Islamic House of Wisdom says it's important to include several mosques because Fadlallah preached unity among people.

The Detroit area has a large population of Arabs and Muslims. Many trace their roots to Lebanon. Source.

I have an idea. Since there are so many radical Muslims in Dearborn, and since so many of them want to see the U.S. destroyed, perhaps we should let them pull the strings of the Dearborn Police Department. That way, Christians are sure to get fair treatment.

Tuesday, July 6, 2010

An Open Message to Dearborn Police Chief Ronald Haddad

*****Click here for a complete summary of our experience in Dearborn.*****

Welcome to Dearborn, the city where Muslims are free to assault Christians, where hate messages abound, where Christians are arrested for holding discussions on public streets, where police harass and bully Christians who try to distribute copies of the Gospel. Leading the charge for Sharia in Dearborn is Police Chief Ronald Haddad, who refuses to return our illegally seized video cameras. As of this posting, it's been two and a half weeks since Haddad's officers stole thousands of dollars worth of video equipment, and more than two weeks since he was informed that his actions were illegal. There's been no response from Haddad yet. Please help me publicize his campaign against the Constitution.

Sunday, July 4, 2010

Muhammad's War On Muslims

We have just witnessed yet another attack in Pakistan of Muslim against Muslim. (See 1, 2, 3). I hear people say that the Muslims who do this are not true Muslims, but there is a problem with this conclusion. Firstly, the Qur'an commands the "rightly guided" Muslims to make war on false Muslims.

O you who believe! Observe your duty to Allah, and give up what remaineth (due to you) from usury, if you are (in truth) believers. And if you do not, then be warned of war (against you) from Allah and His messenger. And if you repent, then you have your principal (without interest). Wrong not, and you shall not be wronged. (Qur'an 2:278-279, Pickthall)


O Prophet! Strive against the disbelievers and the hypocrites! Be harsh with them. Their ultimate abode is hell, a hapless journey's end. (Qur'an 9:73, Pitckthall)


And if two parties of believers fall to fighting, then make peace between them. And if one party of them doeth wrong to the other, fight ye that which doeth wrong till it return unto the ordinance of Allah; then, if it return, make peace between them justly, and act equitably. Lo! Allah loveth the equitable. (Qur'an 49:9, Pickthall)


The Sunnah also teaches the same thing.

Narrated Daylam al-Himyari: I asked the Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) and said: Apostle of Allah! we live in a cold land in which we do heavy work and we make a liquor from wheat to get strength from it for our work and to stand the cold of our country. He asked: Is it intoxicating? I replied: Yes. He said: You must avoid it. I said: The people will not abandon it. He said: If they do not abandon it, fight with them. (Abu Dawood: bk 26, no. 3675, Hasan)


The owners of the mosque of opposition had come to the apostle as he was preparing
for (to attack) Tabuk, saying, "We have built a mosque for the sick and needy and for nights of bad weather, and we should like you to come to us and pray for us there." He said that he was on the point of travelling, and was preoccupied ... and that when he came back if God willed he would come to them and pray for them in it. When he stopped in Dhu Awan news of the mosque came to him, and he summoned Malik b. al-Dukhshum ... and Ma'n b. `Adiy ... and told them to go to the mosque of those evil men and destroy and burn it. ... and then the two of them ran into the mosque where its people were and burned and destroyed it and the people ran away from it. (Ibn Ishaq, Sirat Rasul Allah, p. 609)


Narrated Abu Huraira: When Allah's Apostle died and Abu Bakr was elected as a Caliph after him, some of the Arabs reverted to disbelief. Umar said to Abu Bakr, "How dare you fight the people when Allah's Apostle said: I have been ordered to fight the people till they say: None has the right to be worshipped but Allah, and whoever says: None has the right to be worshipped but Allah, saves his wealth and his life from me unless he deserves a legal punishment justy, and his account will be with Allah!" Abu Bakr said, "By Allah, I will fight him who discriminates between Zakat and prayers, for Zakat is the compulsory right to be taken from the wealth by Allah, if they refuse to give me even a tying rope which they use to give to Allah's
Apostle, I would fight them for withholding it." Umar said, "By Allah, it was nothing, except I saw that Allah had opened the chest of Abu Bakr to the fight, and I came to know for certain that was the truth." (Bukhari: vol 9, bk. 92, no. 388, Khan)


Thus the Qur'an and Sunnah command faithful Muslims to make war on those Muslims who do not obey all of Islam's teaching. This is a very important aspect of Jihad. Jihad is not just against non-Muslims; it is also against Muslims. This is why Muslim groups in Pakistan blow up mosques of those they believe to be false Muslims.

How do you control a doctrine this? Who determines who is "rightly guided"? This is madness and nothing but trouble for Muslims and everyone one else. This is not God's way and does not bring about true worship of God. It is the gospel that is the right way for it seeks to change hearts by the power of God's spirit not by human violence.