Islam Day in Hawaii

From the Honolulu Advertiser:

Posted at 11:18 p.m., Wednesday, May 6, 2009

Hawaii lawmakers create 'Islam Day'

Associated Press

Hawaii is planning to celebrate "Islam Day" over the objections of state lawmakers who associate extremist Muslims with terrorism.

The resolution to proclaim Sept. 24, 2009, as Islam Day passed the Senate yesterday on a 22-3 vote.
As more than 100 Christians gathered in the Senate to oppose same-sex civil unions cheered, the Senate's two Republicans argued that members of all religions shouldn't forget the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
Democrats countered that the diversity and positive contributions of the Islamic world should be honored.
The resolution does not call for any spending or organized celebration of Islam Day.

This proclamation has created an opportunity for discussion and education on Islam.

It is my hope that the people of Hawaii will move away from the "all Muslims are terrorists" common opinion and with unprejudiced eyes learn even a little something about Islam.

I offer this Baha'i perspective on Islam for those who don't want to become confused or embroiled in the sectarian-arguments within the Faith today.

Notes on Islam from a Bahá'í Perspective

Some excerpts:
"Like any religious tradition, Islam can be summarized simply or in complex detail, depending on the level one wishes to reach. Just as Christianity has creeds and Buddhism has the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path, Islam has a basic summary of major teachings. This summary is oriented around what the believer must do; it says little about what he or she should believe. Islam does have a complex metaphysics, and we will explore it as well. The basic summary of Islam is called the FIVE PILLARS."
 ...

"some Muslims consider jihád a major principle of the Faith; in fact, some consider it the fifth pillar. The translation "holy war" is very misleading; as Muslims are quick to point out, Arabic has no word for "holy war," the phrase having developed as a way to translate the word crusade, which is a Latin word and a "Christian" idea! Jihád means to struggle in the path of God, and only rarely is such struggle violent. To struggle in the path of God can refer to one's effort to control one's passions and avoid vices; it can be an internal effort. It can mean telling others of the true Faith; this is how Islam has always been spread. While Muslim armies have often conquered areas, they did not convert the population at the point of the sword; rather, they established a Muslim civil, educational, and legal system, and allowed the conversion to occur gradually, over hundreds of years, through personal efforts by Muslims. In this respect the record of Islam is at least as good as Christianity. Charlemagne converted half of Germany to Christianity by the sword, and massacred thousands who refused to surrender their pagan beliefs. Spain was forcibly converted back to Christianity from Islam by the sword, and thousands of Muslims and Jews were forced to flee. The Jews fled not to other Christian countries, but to Muslim countries, where they were persecuted much less. Most of Latin America was Christianized through a combination of force and missionary work.

      The word jihád, however, has come to acquire the connotation of holy war as well as its other meanings. Muslim fanatics often invoke it against outsiders and against each other: the Iran-Iraq war was declared a jihád by both sides."