Islam: A Religion of Peace, or of Violence?

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“Is Islam a religion of terror?” It is a question that many people ask. When people who claim to be doing the will of Allah by being the cause of terrible events such as the attacks of 9/11 or the Boston Marathon bombings, it is a question that is a fair question to ask. It was a question that I did not have a clear answer on before I started to research. When I asked some people, they adamantly replied that it was indeed a violent religion. Then when I asked other people such as a British Pakistani girl named Meezaab, they replied that it is a religion of peace. Why such a huge difference in opinion? I did not know what to think. However after researching, I came to the conclusion that although most Muslims are probably not violent, Islam itself leans towards being a violent religion. I came to this opinion by looking at the history of Islam, the spread of Islam, Qur’anic texts, the life of Muhammad, and current day practices and occurrences.
Right after the devastating September 11 attacks of 2001, President George W. Bush made a declaration of war on terrorism. In his speech he called “The terrorists practice a fringe form of Islamic extremism that has been rejected by Muslim scholars and the vast majority of Muslim clerics--a fringe movement that perverts the peaceful teachings of Islam.” It is something I would truly 0like to believe. I would like to believe that Islam is peaceful religion, not fundamentally a violent one. But I don’t think that view would be fully accurate.
A brief look at Islamic History makes my question the peacefulness of Islam. In Chapter 5 of Islam: An Historical Introduction the author Endress explains that during the time Muhammad was alive, he conquered the whole Arabian Peninsula. Then...

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...n Historical Introduction. Edinburgh: Edinburgh UP, 2002. Pa96. Print.
George W. Bush: Declaration of War on Terrorism, public domain document. Archived by Encyclopedia Britannica.
LEFKOVITS, ETGAR. "Christian Community in Danger of Disappearing in PA Areas. Israeli Human Rights Lawyer Cites Muslim Persecution as Primary Reason of Christian Exodus from West Bank." Jerusalem Post: 07. Dec 04 2007. ProQuest. Web. 15 May 2014 .
Spencer, Robert. "The Tabuk Raid." The Truth about Muhammad: Founder of the World's Most Intolerant Religion. Washington, DC: Regnery Pub., 2006. 170. Print.
The Qur'an: English Meanings and Notes, Riyadh: Al-Muntada Al-Islami Trust, 2001- 2011; Jeddah: Dar Abul-Qasim 1997-2001.
Weinthal, Benjamin. "Christians Persecuted at Alarming Rate in Iran, Arab World, US Report Says." Fox News. FOX News Network, 11 May 2014. Web. 14 May 2014.

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