Tuesday, January 25, 2005

# 91 Bush elevates Koran in Inaugural Address.

After being sworn in George W. Bush gave his Inaugural Address, which included the following:

That edifice of character is built in families, supported by communities with standards, and sustained in our national life by the truths of Sinai, the Sermon on the Mount, the words of the Koran, and the varied faiths of our people.

Of course the Bible and the Koran conflict greatly. They cannot both build the same kind of society. Notice that only two examples of the Bible are alluded to (and one of them is probably also in the Koran), but the WORDS of the Koran (assumedly ALL of them), and the varied FAITHS of OTHER people (non-Christians) are lauded.

He is making it out that America was built by the Koran, other faiths, and just a sprinkling of Christianity.

http://thetarpit.blogspot.com/2005/01/president-bush-takes-oath-on-bible.html

"The words of the Koran?"

Those are the words of Mohammed, a 7th Century Arabian conqueror and tyrant. At what point did the Koran become a contributor to the American ideal of freedom? At what point did multiculturalism and political correctness make it so imperative that even a Republican President would choose to ignore the truth and elevate the likes of Mohammed to the level of even Moses, let alone of Jesus?

The truths of Sinai are embodied in the Ten Commandments. The Sermon on the Mount is an essential revelation of the teachings and character of Jesus Christ. These are implicitly understood as foundational elements of Western and American Civilization. Can this be said of the words of the Koran? Sura 9 of the Koran is understood by Muslim scholars to be the last Sura "given" to Mohammed, and as such is the final word, trumping any previous Sura with which it might conflict. It is essentially the Great Commission of Mohammedans, and not surprisingly, it deals extensively with the practice of jihad, or holy war.

Here are a few passages from Sura 9: 9:5

But when the forbidden months are past, then fight and slay the Pagans wherever ye find them, an seize them, beleaguer them, and lie in wait for them in every stratagem (of war); but if they repent, and establish regular prayers and practise regular charity, then open the way for them: for God is Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful.

That doesn't sound much like "turn the other cheek." What President Bush has done in his address is reiterate his fundamental misunderstanding of the nature of the war America now fights. The words of the Koran do not reinforce America's ideal of freedom; the words of Mohammed directly inspire the mortal threat that Islam poses to American Civilization.

If we do not understand our enemy, what are our prospects for victory?