My Challenge to Frequent Sean Hannity Guest Mike Ghouse

Facts don't matter to some.

I am pleased to respond to Logan’s challenge on the net hoping he and his friends will be open to seeing another point of view. I pray that he and his friends read this with an open mind and an open heart. (of the 3200 words nearly 2400 are quotes from Quraan)

Each one of us bears responsibility to do his or her share of work in creating cohesive societies where everyone feels safe and secure, and trust one another to make life easier for one and the others.  You and I are responsible for our own actions and we have to do our share of good in creating such societies. We have a choice not do a thing and not hear from any.

Just around the crusades, the European kings commissioned a hostile Quran translation to foster warfare against Muslim invaders to get their subject to go fight for them. Then after the fall of Ottoman Empire, a Muslim turns around and produced a hostile translation of Quran to inflame Muslims against Christians and Jews.

Religions were introduced to bring sanity to people, most people get it and few don’t.  There are a few Muslims, Christians, Hindus, Jews and others who don’t get their religion and resort to oppression and hate mongering without realizing it.   If they spend their energy on building peace we will have a much better society to live.

Robert Spencer, Geert Wilders, Brigitte Gabriel, Nonie Darwish, Wafa Sultan, Alan Dershowitz, Ali Sina and a host of others are guided by those translations and it suits them to sell hate and frightened nincompoops write those checks.  

I am willing to discuss this further, if there is intellectual discussion without judgments, if not, don’t expect me to correspond any further. I have referenced some material below where a few men have run off instead of dealing with the issues they raised.

Mike Ghouse

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From the article published at Logan’s challenge, http://loganswarning.com/2011/07/04/my-challenge-to-frequent-sean-hannity-guest-mike-ghouse/.  I have quoted critical paragraphs and responded as diligently as I can.

 “Koran 009.029 - YUSUFALI: Fight those who believe not in Allah nor the Last Day, nor hold that forbidden which hath been forbidden by Allah and His Messenger, nor acknowledge the religion of Truth, (even if they are) of the People of the Book, until they pay the Jizya with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued.”

Although Yusuf Ali’s translation is the first one in English by a Muslim, Muhammad Asad’s translation is closer to meaning than Yusuf Ali and I have opted to go with Asad’s translation locatable at:  http://www.islamicity.com/QuranSearch/

9:29 (Asad) [And] fight against those who - despite having been vouchsafed revelation [aforetime] ^[40] -do not [truly] believe either in God or the Last Day, and do not consider forbidden that which God and His Apostle have forbidden, ^[41] and do not follow the religion of truth [which God has enjoined upon them] ^[42] till they [agree to] pay the exemption tax with a willing hand, after having been humbled [in war]. ^[43]

^[40] Lit., "such of those who were vouchsafed revelation [aforetime] as do not believe...” etc. In accordance with the fundamental principle-observed throughout my interpretation of the Qur'an -that all of its statements and ordinances are mutually complementary and cannot, therefore, be correctly understood unless they are considered as parts of one integral whole, this verse, too must be read in the context of the clear-cut Qur'anic rule that war is permitted only in self-defense (see 2:190-194, and the corresponding notes).

In other words, the above injunction to fight is relevant only in the event of aggression committed against the Muslim community or state, or in the presence of an unmistakable threat to its security: a view which has been shared by that great Islamic thinker, Muhammad `Abduh. Commenting on this verse, he declared: "Fighting has been made obligatory in Islam only for the sake of defending the truth and its followers.... All the campaigns of the Prophet were defensive in character; and so were the wars undertaken by the Companions in the earliest period [of Islam]" (Manar X, 332). (Quran Ref: 9:29)

^[41] This, to my mind, is the key-phrase of the above ordinance. The term "apostle" is obviously used here in its generic sense and applies to all the prophets on whose teachings the beliefs of the Jews and the Christians are supposed to be based - in particular, to Moses and (in the case of the Christians) to Jesus as well (Manar X, 333 and 337). Since, earlier in this sentence, the people alluded to are accused of so grave a sin as willfully refusing to believe in God and the Last Day (i.e., in life after death and man's individual responsibility for his doings on earth), it is inconceivable that they should subsequently be blamed for comparatively minor offences against their religious law: consequently, the stress on their "not forbidding that which God and His apostle have forbidden" must refer to something which is as grave, or almost as grave, as disbelief in God.

In the context of an ordinance enjoining war against them. this "something" can mean only one thing-namely, unprovoked aggression: for it is this that has been forbidden by God through all the apostles who were entrusted with conveying His message to man. Thus, the above verse must be understood as a call to the believers to fight against such-and only such-of the nominal followers of earlier revelation as deny their own professed beliefs by committing aggression against the followers of the Qur'an (cf. Manar X, 338).(Quran Ref: 9:29 )

^[42] See in this connection the statement (in 5:13-14) that the Jews and the Christians "have forgotten much of what they had been told to bear in mind". (Quran Ref: 9:29)

^[43] Sc., "and having become incorporated in the Islamic state". The term Jizya, rendered by me as "exemption tax", occurs in the Qur'an only once, but its meaning and purpose have been fully explained in many authentic Traditions. It is intimately bound up with the concept of the Islamic state as an ideological organization: and this is a point which must always be borne in mind if the real purport of this tax is to be understood. In the Islamic state, every able-bodied Muslim is obliged to take up arms in jihad (i.e., in a just war in God's cause) whenever the freedom of his faith or the political safety of his community is imperiled: in other words, every able-bodied Muslim is liable to compulsory military service. Since this is, primarily, a religious obligation, non-Muslim citizens, who do not subscribe to the ideology of Islam, cannot in fairness be expected to assume a similar burden. On the other hand, they must be accorded full protection of all their civic rights and of their religious freedom: and it is in order to compensate the Muslim community for this unequal distribution of civic burdens that a special tax is levied on non-Muslim citizens (ahl adh-dhimmah, lit., "covenanted" [or "protected"] people", i.e., non-Muslims whose safety is statutorily assured by the Muslim community).

Thus, Jizya is no more and no less than an exemption tax in lieu of military service and in compensation for the "covenant of protection" (dhimmah) accorded to such citizens by the Islamic state. (The term itself is derived from the verb jaza, "he rendered [something] as a satisfaction", or "as a compensation [in lieu of something else]" - cf. Lane II, 422.) No fixed rate has been set either by the Qur'an or by the Prophet for this tax; but from all available Traditions it is evident that it is to be considerably lower than the tax called zakah ("the purifying dues") to which Muslims are liable and which - because it is a specifically Islamic religious duty-is naturally not to be levied on non-Muslims.

Only such of the non-Muslim citizens who, if they were Muslims, would be expected to serve in the armed forces of the state are liable to the payment of Jizya, provided that they can easily afford it. Accordingly, all non-Muslim citizens whose personal status or condition would automatically free them from the obligation to render military service are statutorily - that is, on the basis of clear-cut ordinances promulgated by the Prophet-exempted from the payment of Jizya: (a) all women, (b) males who have not yet reached full maturity, (c) old men, (d) all sick or crippled men, (e) priests and monks. All non-Muslim citizens who volunteer for military service are obviously exempted from the payment of Jizya. My rendering of the expression `an yad (lit., "out of hand") as "with a willing hand", that is, without reluctance, is based on one of several explanations offered by Zamakhshari in his commentary on the above verse. Rashid Rida', taking the word yad in its metaphorical significance of "power" or "ability", relates the phrase can yad to the financial ability of the person liable to the payment of Jizya (see Manar X, 342): an interpretation which is undoubtedly justified in view of the accepted definition of this tax.(Quran Ref: 9:29 )

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“Mike you are not the spokesperson for Muslims in America. So do not pretend to be. What Mike fails to mention is that the God of Islam is not the same God as Christianity. The proof of this is that the Islam scriptures state that Jesus will come back as a Muslim and destroy Christianity. The God of Christianity would not want his or her religion destroyed. Mike thinks that statement from Mohammad will fool us.”

As individuals we are responsible to create cohesive societies where everyone feels secure and trusts one another to make life easier for the self and others.  You and I are responsible for our own actions.  In our solitude if we reflect, or on the day of accountability, we are to account for our karma.  That puts the responsibility on you and I to speak out when there is injustice, when there is falsehood and when there is oppression and I am doing my share of the work.

 There is just one creator; there is no such thing as Christian God or Muslim God that is sheer ignorance. God is not a being, not a thing with specific characteristics to limit his acceptance to the universe.

Jesus represents hope for humanity, when things are rough, when people are creating division, hating each other, bombing each other and become revenge seeking, they are simply reacting. As humans we hope for a just and peaceful world and that hope is anchored in Jesus, his re-appearance gives us hope and salvation from the hatefulness that has permeated in the society.  When good becomes a common place, it simply means evil is subsided or gone.

Since Jesus is the promised Messiah predicted in Islam, the right wing Christian assumes that Jesus is a Muslim (p0litical) and will destroy them, as the Logan website writes it up.  Likewise the right wing Muslim believes that when Jesus takes out the evil, he took out Christianity. How ignorant are some of these folks.

 Destroying Christianity is the manufacture of right wing Christians and right wing Muslims and they do not represent the majority of Christians and Muslims.

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“But the reality is his statement does not include the words “no superiority over other religions”. What else do you have Mike?”

First of all, the spiritual aspect of every religion brings goodness to humanity, the insecurity in weak men of religion causes division, mine is better than yours. Historically, Islam did not exist during the time of Jesus, if it was, he would have talked about it, as he was a pluralist.  Christianity did not exist during the times of Moses, if not Moses would have delivered the New Testament as well. Both Christianity and Judaism did exist during the times of the Prophet Muhammad and both are respectfully talked about in Islam and Quraan.

I don’t know how knowledgeable you are, but it is a requirement for Muslims to believe in Moses, Jesus and all the prophets of Old Testament. Indeed, one’ faith is incomplete without that belief. Add to this, the Prophet tells his followers not to treat one prophet to be superior over the other – Islam was not Muhammad’s religion, it was a universal idea to bring peace to humanity through the removal of arrogance. He did not want people to worship him, he never claimed to be divine, in fact he said, I am just like you, a mortal being, when I die, bury me in an unmarked grave.. He insisted that no one paint his picture, lest someone starts worshipping him rather than God. That was the best example of humility of the Prophet.

Christianity or Judaism does not say that their religion is not superior to any, then why do you expect Islam to say that, that is hypocrisy, is it not?

 However, read these verses;

[2:136] Say, "We believe in GOD, and in what was sent down to us, and in what was sent down to Abraham, Ismail, Isaac, Jacob, and the Patriarchs; and in what was given to Moses and Jesus, and all the prophets from their Lord. We make no distinction among any of them. To Him alone we are submitters."

 [21:47] we will establish the scales of justice on the Day of Resurrection. No soul will suffer the least injustice. Even the equivalent of a mustard seed will be accounted for. We are the most efficient reckoners.

[2:148] each of you chooses the direction to follow; you shall race towards righteousness. Wherever you may be, GOD will summon you all. GOD is Omnipotent.

[10:99] had your Lord willed, all the people on earth would have believed. Do you want to force the people to become believers?

[4:123] it is not in accordance with your wishes, or the wishes of the people of the scripture: anyone who commits evil pays for it, and will have no helper or supporter against GOD.

5:8 (Asad) O YOU who have attained to faith! Be ever steadfast in your devotion to God, bearing witness to the truth in all equity; and never let hatred of any-one ^[19] lead

[49:13] O people, we created you from the same male and female, and rendered you distinct peoples and tribes that you may recognize one another. The best among you in the sight of GOD is the most righteous. GOD is Omniscient, Cognizant you into the sin of deviating from justice. Be just: this is closest to being God-conscious. And remain conscious of God: verily, God is aware of all that you do.

[22:17] Those who believe, those who are Jewish, the converts, the Christians, the Zoroastrians, and the idol worshipers, GOD is the One who will judge among them on the Day of Resurrection. GOD witnesses all things.

 [2:62] Surely, those who believe, those who are Jewish, the Christians, and the converts; anyone who (1) believes in GOD, and (2) believes in the Last Day, and (3) leads a righteous life, will receive their recompense from their Lord. They have nothing to fear, nor will they grieve.

Quraan also tells that one can marry a Jewish or Christian woman without converting.

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 “You claim that Muslims love the US legal system, in which juries judge others. Then you turn around and state only God should judge. So which is it?”

Mr. Simpleton, when you rape, murder, cheat and loot, you are affecting the civil balance of a society.  It is the society that judges you and hauls your heinie to the jail. Whereas, God judges your belief in oneness of God, humanity and the universe. He gives ample opportunities to repent. God loves those who repent and put themselves on moral high grounds.

American Muslims have placed their trust in the American justice system; the civil laws of our nation provide ample justice. The Muslim majority in America is happy with the American system and does not want to have Sharia law here in America. Check the link below on Sharia.

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“Imam Feisal is pro-Sharia, so he is no friend of America. He also uses the freedoms of America against America, in his Islamic cause.”

Have you ever read his book, “What is right with Islam is right with America”? If you send me an email with your address, I will have a copy of that book mailed to you.  Sharia simply means living by rules and it has two sides to it; personal and public. Imam Feisal was referring to Personal Sharia. Is there is a nation, including our own, where laws are always just?  The stoning of adulterers is wrong, the punishment for Blasphemy is wrong… neither of them are in Quraan. Go fact check – the number of adulterers stoned to death number less than the deaths we executed in Texas and none need to be singled out, and both need to be condemned.

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“Muslim Hadith Book 019, Number 4366:
It has been narrated by ‘Umar b. al-Khattib that he heard the Messenger of Allah (May peace be upon him) say: I will expel the Jews and Christians from the Arabian Peninsula and will not leave any but Muslim.”

I have not checked the veracity of your quote and I ask you to do that and not rely on hearsay. It sounds good to the right wing Christians and they will make a capital out of it, and it also appeals to the right wing Muslims as it suits their agenda.  But that is not in the spirit of Quraan, Islam and the Prophet.

If one is allowed to marry a Jewish or Christian woman without asking her to convert, then this Hadith is meaningless and perhaps cooked up by the right wingers.

Take a look at the following:

[10:99] had your Lord willed, all the people on earth would have believed. Do you want to force the people to become believers?

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 “Mike, my challenge to you is for you to come here, and prove my statements on Islam to be false. Unlike Hannity, I will not sit silently as you try and cover for the Islamic menace!”

I have done my part and it is up to you to research the truth.  I have responded to Geert Wilders, Robert Spencer, and Naomi… Ali Sina and several others, they don’t read, their purpose is to make money - look at your own site, asking for money, that is your business. I am not looking for any money and just doing my share of the work to build a cohesive America where no one has to live in apprehension of the other. 

Please feel free to clarify anything you wish but refrain from anything that you cannot substantiate from Quraan.

Thank you.

Mike Ghouse

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SHARIA LAWS: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/sharia-law-not-in-america_b_653250.html

 Geert wilders:  Muslim response to Geert Wilders’ Fitna
http://quraan-today.blogspot.com/2008/01/muslim-response-to-wilders.html

Robert Spencer: One Islam - http://archive.frontpagemag.com/readArticle.aspx?ARTID=26113

Nona Derwish: Joys of Muslim Women - http://hatesermons.blogspot.com/2009/08/nonie-darwish-hate-monger.html 

MA Khan:  Does Quraan incite Violence?
http://desicritics.org/2009/02/15/000156.php

Hate Sermons: http://hatesermons.blogspot.com/2008/03/hate-sermons-from-pulpit.html 

Quraan conference: www.Quraanconference.com 

 My Challenge to Frequent Sean Hannity Guest Mike Ghouse

http://loganswarning.com/2011/07/04/my-challenge-to-frequent-sean-hannity-guest-mike-ghouse/

The World Muslim Congress is committed to nurturing the pluralistic ideals embedded in Islam.  

 Mike Ghouse

 Mike Ghouse is a speaker, thinker, writer and a frequent guest on Hannity show and nationally syndicated Radio shows and Dallas TV, Radio and Print Media. He presides America Together Foundation and is committed to building a cohesive America and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. Over 1000 articles have been published on Pluralism, Interfaith, Islam, India and cohesive societies. Two of his books are poised to be released this fall on Pluralism and Islam. He is available to speak at your place of worship, work, school, college, seminars or conferences. His work is encapsulated in 27 blogs, four websites and several forums indexed at http://www.mikeghouse.net/

Gaddafi and beyond; a challenge for the Neocons and Muslims alike

Beyond Gaddafi; a challenge for the neocons and muslims alike
http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2011/02/gaddafi-and-beyond-challenge-for.html

When I went on Fox’s Sean Hannity Show last week, we were to talk about Gaddafi’s call to Muslims to rise against the White people, here were my talking points.

Gaddaffi knew he has got a few days left, and as usual he wanted to fool the Muslims across the world to rise up by manufacturing an enemy that was not there. Who was he fooling? All the damned dictators and fascist live in a shielded bunker, their cohorts keep giving them false advise that they are in control, as if they are God eternal.

Gaddafi is deflecting the issue to take the pressure off, he is delusional.  If the SOB thinks he can get away from shooting his people, he is in for a treat; he will have to disgracefully run from his country. He simply needs to announce that he will bring genuine democracy where ever a Libyan has a choice to support who she or he wants to support freely. Qur’aan adds, there is no compulsion in the matters of faith, in this case faith in those who can provide them just governance. 

There are 12 nations that carry an Islamic label and are about to fall, one after the other from the hands of corrupt men in to the hands of people and through non-violence, civil disobedience and other peaceful means. The Right wingers have highlighted the actions of the few and push Muslims into a cage they did not belong. Muslims are freeing themselves from such imposed cages.

No doubt there will be chaos, but people can handle their own affairs well and out of chaos will emerge a fledgling governance of the people by the people for the people.  It is sheer arrogance to believe that they cannot, they said the same thing about India, Indonesia and several other nations.

It is a testing time for the right wingers in America, UK and Israel to open up and show if they really want democracies around or were they simply faking it and misleading the public through the American TV networks. The same goes to the monarchs and dictators.

I wish the Mossad and CIA were reliable intelligence agencies; they have cooked up and lied to please the bosses and the public. It gave me hopes that even Sean Hannity saw acknowledged that in one of our interviews.

Have they come with anything reliable from Iran to Afghanistan to Iraq and Egypt? They will be wrong again on the other nations and eventually on Pakistan. People can take only so much shit; they will revolt and those of us in America need to stand firmly and prepare the right-wingers to support the people movements; else, we are going to lose many of those nations to Russia or Iran. Militarily, we cannot fight in every nook and corner and go through another budget deficit and ruin our own country in attempting to ruin others. Our own interests should be a priority.

As a Muslim, I am thrilled to see an end to dictatorships and theocracies. Here is a challenge for Muslims; Prophet Muhammad did not have an Islamic Government during his time, it was more like pluralistic governance where the Jews, Christians and others were signatories to the Madinah pact, he has repeatedly said and demonstrated to treat all the people of the book (meaning following written guidelines) with respect and the Qur’aan says whether you are a Jew, Christian or other God will. We need to find the original document where the prophet may have signed it as Muhammad bin Abdullah as opposed to Muhammad Rasool Allah, as he had done in another peace treaty with Meccans.  

Mike Ghouse is a thinker, writer, speaker, futurist and an activist of Pluralism, Interfaith, Co-existence, Peace and Islam. He is a frequent guest at the TV, radio and print media offering pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. His work is reflected at three websites and 21 Blogs listed at http://www.mikeghouse.net/

Freedom Gene; America does it.

Despite the binding moral and metaphysical truths espoused by the conservatives as truths to live by, the American gene of freedom has gotten them as much as everyone. One of the values immigrants cherish most is the freedom this land evokes, cajoles and activates in them, there is nothing like it anywhere on Earth. America brings freedom from the clutches of one’s own beliefs.

The following opinion is part of my weekly write up for Texas Faith Forum, at the end of my piece; the Dallas Morning News link presents opinions on the forum. The question was, “Why shouldn’t people of faith worry about maintaining theological continuity and integrity, if indeed religion proclaims binding moral and metaphysical truths that are necessary to live by?”

Link - http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2010/12/freedom-gene-america-does-it.html

# # #

Freedom Gene, America does it!

People of faith, particularly “conservatives,” continue to worry about maintaining theological continuity and integrity, but they really don’t have a choice and cannot “control” perceived “deviants” by frightening them with excommunication or persecution. America is the land of the free and it does bring freedom to one from the clutches of one’s own beliefs, however religious associations in America are tempered with free choice.

The men and women who came to America in the face of religious persecution in Europe formed their own communities and found the freedom to practice what they believed was their inalienable right. As more diverse communities grew, they developed an acceptance of the other out of a sheer need to co-exist and a desire to reject the idea of persecution they had endured.  Although fanaticism was a part of the growth in persecuting Jews, Catholics, Mormons and Wicca, the idea of co-existence was also growing stronger.

 One of the values immigrants cherish most is the freedom this land evokes, cajoles and activates in them, there is nothing like it anywhere on Earth. Immigrants are not what you think to be; Mexicans, Indians, Chinese, Asians, Arabs or Africans but every one of us including you and me.  Indeed the Native Americans have fiercely guarded and demonstrated their freedom as well.

Despite the binding moral and metaphysical truths espoused by the conservatives as truths to live by, the American gene of freedom has gotten them as much as everyone. They are worried about the dilution of their faith, but have gradually moved on from the familiar to unfamiliar, an inch at a time establishing new equilibriums. They have reluctantly accepted pre-marital sexual relations; resisted abortion and have remained silent about men and women living together without the wedding vows,  and now they are battling with the homosexuality issues and one day they will cross that threshold and accept new equilibriums.

The first living and practicing women Rabbis, Pastors or Imams in the Abrahamic traditions particularly, and priests in other traditions in general are here in the United States, an unthinkable thing some fifty years ago. Our sense of morality is continuously enlarging and embracing diversity of thought as the legitimate other.

Freedom of religion is the binding value of America and the American gene of freedom thrives and permeates in every one’s DNA, and we will remain loyal to freedom over dogma.

Read the other opinions at Dallas Morning News Link: 

http://religionblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2010/12/texas-faith-why-not-worry-abou.html

  

Mike Ghouse runs the Foundation for Pluralism championing the idea of co-existence through respecting and accepting the otherness of other and has dedicated his life to nurturing the pluralistic ideals embedded in Islam through the World Muslim Congress.

Mike is available to speak on Pluralism, Islam, Civil Societies, Peace & Justice Saturday, December 04, 2010at your school, work place, seminars or place of worship. He is a regular commentator on the TV, Radio and Print media offering pluralistic solutions to the issues of the day. He is a speaker, thinker, writer and a peace activist. Mike’s book “ Back to the basics” is coming soon.

Mike's work is reflected at three websites & twenty two Blogs listed at http://www.mikeghouse.net/

Quraan Conference Program Sequence

Quraan Conference Program Sequence
Full Video of the program and report will be posted soon.

# # #

The purpose of this conference is to understand the issues and find ways to remove such fears in an open forum and restore the cohesiveness of our society and work towards building a safe and secure America. 

PROGRAM SEQUENCE

         National Anthem

         Pledge of Allegiance

         Acknowledgements

         How it got started – Jonathan Halsey

         Purpose – to build a cohesive America

         Misrepresented verses in circulation

         Narrow it down to 10 Verses 

         A short prayer

         Methodology of reading the verses

         Non-Muslim Panelists will read & explain a verse each

         Conclusion – 1 minute comment from each  panelist

         Recognition of Recent Awardees

         Refreshments.

IN CO-OPERATION WITH:

     American Clergy Leadership Conference

     Dallas Peace Center – www.DallasPeaceCenter.org

     Unity Church of Dallas - http://www.unitydallas.org/

     Universal Peace Federation – www.upf.org
     Fun Asia, banquet halls, theaters, catering www.Funasia.net

PANELISTS

Pastor George Mason - Wilshire Baptist Church

Rev. Petra Weldes – Center for Spiritual Living
Rev. Michael Jenkins – American Clergy Leadership

Dr. Harbans Lal – Guru Granth Sahib Studies

Pastor Eric Folkerth - United Methodist Church

Hon. Lon Burnam – Texas State Representative

Dr. John Norris – Professor of Theology, UD

Rev. Bill Matthews, Chair, Interfaith Council

Rev. Tony Brigmon, Mormon Church

            Dr. Karen Hollie, Protestant

MUSLIM PANELISTS

Imam Zia Shaikh, Irving Community Center 

Imam Shakoor, Warith Deen Muhammad Masjid

Hamid Sheikh, Ahmadiyya Muslim Community 

Dr. Basheer Ahmed, Muslim Community Center

QURAAN COPIES

CAIR – Council on Islamic Relations

ISNA – Islamic Society of North America 

KEY VOLUNTEERS

Rita Clarke and her team, Dallas Peace Center

Dr. Karen Hollie and her team, Life way Church
Esther Vasquez and her Team, Unification Church
Adil Khan, General Assistance

SERVICES

Aftab Chagani and his Staff – Audio & Video
Kevin Foresman, Video Technician
Syed Rafi, Banners and Signs

GRATITUDE TO:

            Laura Sutherland, Unity Church of Dallas

The program was organized by World Muslim Congress and the Foundation for Pluralism working towards building cohesive societies with dignity and respect to every human on earth.  

Mike Ghouse runs the Foundation for Pluralism championing the idea of co-existence through respecting and accepting the otherness of other and has dedicated his life to nurturing the pluralistic ideals embedded in Islam through the World Muslim Congress. He is a regular commentator on the TV, Radio and Print media offering pluralistic solutions to the issues of the day. He is a speaker, thinker, writer and a peace activist. Mike's work is reflected at three websites & twenty two Blogs listed at http://www.mikeghouse.net/

Sean Hannity Show; Wafa Sultan and Mike Ghouse

http://theghousediary.blogspot.com/2010/11/sean-hannity-show-wafa-sultan-and-mike.html

Hannity guests – As a moderate, I am delighted to be in the company of radical right wingers and still get a few points across. I am listed among 20 of Hannity guests including President George Bush (goodman in the wrong company), Carl Rove, New Gingrich (hate peddler), Ann Coulter, Bobby Jindal,  Pat Buchanan (reasonable), Dick Morris (not a radical) and others. http://www.hannity.com/guests

I will be on the air with Sean Hannity and Wafa Sultan on Friday, November 26 at 5:30 PM EST. A range of topics will be discussed including Ground Zero Mosque and the upcoming Quraan Conferences on December 5 in Dallas.

Wafa Sultan is a bellyacher, instead of blaming the societal wrong doers; Wafa Sultan has chosen to blame their religion.  My biggest surprise was "hate speeches were allowed to spew out from the religious places".  

THE RADIO SHOW ( FRIDAY EVE 5:30 PM)

Mark Simone conducted the interview - he sort of alluded to Dr. Sultan and I to go at each other and we did.

She claimed to be native linguist of Arabic and assumed that by the virtue of it, it will give her an upper hand.

She quoted a verse from Chapter 4 about killing the infidels and she made the same dishonest representation about not sharing a few sentences before and after the subject verse. I explained to her - that we if we view the scene where I shoot the intruder, I look bad and criminal - but if you rewind 2 frames, you can see that the intruder threatened me and was about to shoot and then if you see that I treat the person kindly after wards.

She jumped on Qur’aan 4:34 where it is alleged that a man is allowed to beat the wife after warning and admonishing and if she still does not get it, beat her with a feather like object. I reminded her that it was the "men's interpretation" and men all over the world mistreat women even today but look at the usage of the word - 35 times in Qur’aan the word "Daraba" was meant for "separation" and five times " to beat". Some men chose to the 5 timer verse the thirty five times.

Prophet through Qur’aan for the first time in the history of mankind gave rights to women - to initiate marriage and divorce, to own her own business and property - and Qur’aan tells in every sentence that men and women have the same rights and that they are a catalyst to each other’s happiness, respect, dignity and life. Why would it tell to beat...? Some Men, no matter where on the earth they live, they are insecure and always find ways to power over women, we Americans are no exception either. Several among us do not want to see a woman president, how many men you personally know who would not want a woman to speak from the pulpit. Why pick on Muslim men? Indeed, there are several Muslim societies where men force women to obey - hell, that is not Islamic to begin with and what’s the point blaming the religion? Blame the men culture.

Qur’aan (Bible, Torah, Bhagvad Gita or any holy text) is like nuclear power - which is dangerous in the hands of a few, but beneficial in the hands of many in terms of electricity and everything that runs by electricity.

She was putting a childish question to determine where I stand, she asks, do you want Americans to read the Arabic version of Prophet's biography? Of course, I would prefer people to find the truth on their own and not on hearsay. Is she assuming that Americans are dumb people and do not know Arabic? Hell, she is wrong about that, we Americans have the resources to translate every darn code on the earth; we have more people who can translate anything than any other part of the world.

I ended up with the same challenge - find me the faults in Qur’aan directly and not hearsay....   the full interview will be on audio available at Hannity show... the link is given in the write up.

Qur’aan conference is on 5th of December, it’s time to demystify those myths.

REFERENCES:

Mike Ghouse on Hannity - http://www.hannity.com/guests

Conference - www.QuraanConference.com

Wafa Sultan - http://hatesermons.blogspot.com/2010/03/hate-talks-coming-out-of-synagogues.html

Hannity Guests - http://www.hannity.com/guests


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Mike Ghouse runs the Foundation for Pluralism championing the idea of co-existence through respecting and accepting the otherness of other and has dedicated his life to nurturing the pluralistic ideals embedded in Islam through the World Muslim Congress. He is a regular commentator on the TV, Radio and Print media offering pluralistic solutions to the issues of the day. He is a speaker, thinker, writer and a peace activist. Mike's work is reflected at three websites & twenty two Blogs listed at http://www.mikeghouse.net/