UI – Part 190 – Al Qaeda/Mali/Jihad (II)

Purpose of AQ

Founded by Osama Bin Laden in 1988-1989, AQ is predominantly Sunni with a goal of establishing worldwide Islam having a strict adherence to Sharia Law.  It may be akin to Wahabbism, established or known more from its base in Saudi Arabia.  It calls for global jihad.  Jihad is a duty of religious Muslims to ‘strive (struggle) in the way of Allah.’  That I leave to interpretation.

But there are two aspects of Jihad.  One is an inner struggle – a person’s struggle with everyday life and living to honour god.   It is directed at self, to be a good person and love Allah – a spiritual directive.  Fulfilment of religious duties is a component of the inner struggle – jihad.  It is non-violent.  The second is an outward battle; call it a physical struggle, against the enemies of Islam.  It can be non-violent or violent.  When violent we know of it as ‘holy war.’  AQ interprets this physical struggle as military. The key wording I chose is ‘against’, it is an anti-movement, a justification to eliminate, or extirpate all that is not Muslim.  Borderline Muslims are also subject to being an enemy of the most ardent warriors for Allah.  For AQ Shiites may be enemies of Islam as they see it.

Muhammad is the source of Jihad.  Also the Quran.  When used in a militant, military or combatant fashion it is questionable as to whether jihad is from the Quran.  The word ‘qital’ means fighting, not ‘jihad.’  So AQ may be taking liberties with their established purpose flying the banner and declaring Allah as the justifier of their personal hatred.  They seem more warlords than religious leaders or advocates.  They are not advocates of freedom, clearly demonstrated as they parade about wherever they are pictured with AK-15, Ak-47’s and other weapons of war, flames burning in the background from bombs bursting under or inside vehicles, scarves or unkempt headdresses hiding who they really are.  They defend their cause, but not as proud, stand-up persons who are easily identified with their cause. Do they fear recognition?  They hide behind their hatred, their darkness, and their blackened hearts for the true God.  They are stone cold killers.  They may opt for suicide in the name of Allah, encouraged by their leaders as a rapid means of passage to the afterlife.  That is the purpose most observe.

What is the true ‘jihad’?  Is it AQ’s purpose? It is confusing, but certainly ‘chaos’ is involved.

There is no Love in the AQ jihad as a religious cause.  It wants not for any opportunity at peace.  It suggests a cave-like existence, not to contemplate god, but to hide members, weapons and battle gear to simply fight an enemy of their choosing.

More on Jihad in the Endnote.[i]

Legitimacy

They have established themselves as a fighting force. AQ is a product of the Taliban’s resistance and success over the Soviet Union’s attempts to take-over Afghanistan.  It is defined as a ‘Terrorist Organization” by the UN, NATO, the EU, the UK, the USA and other nations.   They resist ‘man-made’ laws, yet what is the source of Sharia or Islamic Laws if not ‘man, the men of Islam.

Any foreign influence in a Muslim area is forbidden and thus requires eradication.  We see this from the Nigerian Boko Haram[ii], and within Afghanistan.  Attempts were made too in Yemen, but have been thwarted.  Members of AQ are convinced Christians and Jews are conspiring against Islam, intent on its destruction.  Who leads this conspiracy is an unknown, but for AQ any Christian that speaks out as to his own faith is an enemy.  Clearly any Muslim who converts is a kafir[iii] and must be destroyed.  Israel is a Country that should not exist.  Peace is not an objective, as even if the world was as an Umma, all Muslim, it would not be peaceful.  AQ would continue.  Any legitimacy of AQ is by force alone.

Do They Know Themselves

Are the members of AQ religious persons?  It is doubtful they could explain the Quran and their belief system.  There are many that are Muslims in name only, knowing no difference except to distinguish themselves as neither Christian nor Jew; they are more cultural Muslims than convicted Islam believers. Born into their religion and precluded from knowing or learning any others, except as taught or instilled as religions that resist Islam and should be hated, they know not love of neighbour, preferring to hate as they have been indoctrinated.  They need to see the movie,  ‘The Other Son’[iv].

Not Good Warriors for God

The warriors for God do not go into battle with a sword (or modern day weapons) but with the Bible, the knowledge that Christ died for their sins and they have been saved.  The wrath of God is not upon them.  They lead their lives accordingly and allow their neighbours to live in peace.  But they will defend their house.  There is no compelling the use of the sword in the New Testament.  As the AQ members are equipped in military gear, the faithful, those believing in the true God, the only God, are equipped with faith in the Mercy and Saving Grace of the Lord.  They will patiently wait judgment day, leaving judgment for their lives to God.  Who is AQ to judge?  They are sinners, selfish, destined for the fires of the damned and they do not know it.  Their good deeds are not found in the killing fields of the kafirs.  There will be no rewards for members of AQ.  They are not good warriors for God; they in fact are not warriors for God at all, but selfish, miss-informed, miss-guided rebels for a cause that is simply bizarre and without merit.  They are being led by human elements with aberrant objectives that use Allah as a cover for their insanity.

Al Qaeda Exchange Program

If you still think you support the cause of Al Qaeda, as an AQ sympathizer, consider the call for kidnapping, an Al Qaeda exchange program, to free Jihadists.  See article[v] – Al Qaeda leader calls for Muslims to kidnap Westerners…   From the article: “We are seeking, by the help of Allah, to capture others and to incite Muslims to capture the citizens of the countries that are fighting Muslims in order to release our captives,” Ayman Al-Zawahri said in a more than two-hour video posted on militant web sites this week, Reuters reported.  The Egyptian-born jihadist called for the abductions as part of a vow not to “spare any efforts” to free Sheikh Omar Abdel-Rahman, CNN reported. Abdel-Rahman is the so-called “blind sheikh” serving a life sentence in U.S. prison for masterminding the 1993 World Trade Center bombing.”

This ‘Call’ to ‘kidnap’ has been acted upon already.  The situation at the natural gas plant in Algeria, just to the north of Mali, is proof justification for actions against non-Muslims are just a ‘call’ away.  It could be a fatwa by Khomeini or from a leader of Al Qaeda or any potentially respected Islamic leader or scholar.  It could be a Billboard posting that non-Muslims are to be fearful of what can happen to you.  This is hate.

Jesus would always say, as did the angels, “Do not be afraid.”  He was cautious and careful to not cause concern over the presence of God.  That is not the case for the Islamists.  Al Qaeda is their example, so too Morsi, Assad, and many more.  They want you to fear Allah as they are the ones that are judging others and killing those who are not in accord with their satanic exploits.

Al-Zawahri and others, and not just AQ affiliates, but Muslim fundamentalists, and the Khomeini, can define what constitutes ‘fighting Muslims.’  They are quick to define persecution even as the slightest mention of the term Islam or Muslim in a statement that questions scripture, its contents, the prophet or Allah.  Also resistance to the imperialistic objective of Islam, continuing ever since the first Caliphs began their movements out of Medina along the northern coast of Africa and to the East towards Persia, to include proselytizing for another faith without even a mention of Islam, calls for ‘fighting.’

Muslims blind to the truth need enlightenment.  The truth must and needs to be uncovered.  Attempts to do so are a cry of Allahu Akbar by the fundamentalist and AQ.  The moderates, a campaign from within is needed – if they can survive.

Blindness

As the Blind Sheik cannot see, all Muslims may indeed be ‘blind.’  They are blind to the Truth, which is biblical.  From Matthew 15:14, “Leave them; they are blind guides.  If a blind man leads a blind man, both will fall into a pit.”  From Isaiah 43:8, calling for people to come to faith in the Lord, “Lead out those who have eyes, but are blind.” From 2 Corinthians 4:4, “The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers (non-Christians), so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.” And lastly, 1 John 2:11, “But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks around in the darkness; he does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded him.”

We are all brothers, yet the Muslim fundamentalists do not see it that way.  What do they not understand?

God’s Light

May the light of God find an opening in the clouds over Mali, the Sudan, Yemen, Afghanistan, Egypt, Pakistan, and other areas  where AQ is attempting to establish its presence and possibly found a caliphate for its self-styled-Sunni-defined-belief-system.   May the eyes of so many oppressed by the villainous actions of the AQ leadership be opened and the venom within their system cleansed by the love God has to offer.  God welcomes those who are not believers.  The eternal kingdom is as home waiting for the lost son, the pens waiting for the lost sheep, to return.  The sons and daughters, the lost, the unbelievers, are not subject to death squads tracking them down while attempting to discover who they are.  We are God’s children and his patience is great. May the scales be removed, fall from those blinded, and the lens of love, freedom, and peace, as God intended, be revealed to those who do not now see. They will then be filled with the Spirit of the Lord; the Holy Spirit.  Thanks be to God.

Let Mali not fall to the destructive satanic forces of AQ.  Vive La France.  (As a sidenote – America is aiding the Frence providing air transport for troops and equipment.)

Grace and Peace