In my December 2015 blog post, I mentioned about a book called, “Son of Hamas,” written by Mosab Hassan Yousef. It was one of the most memorable books I have ever read – with a possible, viable solution proposed by the author to the question: “How can we truly bring about long-lasting peace to the Middle East?”
On February 13, 2016, Antonin Scalia, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States of America, died. We mourn the huge loss for this country because he was a staunch defender of the originalism, which is a principle of interpretation that views the US Constitution’s meaning as fixed as of the time of enactment. In my humble opinion, this is the basis of what makes this country great and why it continues to attract so many people from all around the globe.
On the same day that Justice Scalia passed away, I happened to finish reading another book called, “Captive in Iran,” by Maryam Rostampour and Marziyeh Amirizadeh. The authors, who grew up in Iran, are both Christians with unwavering belief in Jesus Christ.
Although these two books – “Son of Hamas” and “Captive in Iran” – were written by those from two different Middle Eastern countries, the similarities were uncanny in terms of the miserable conditions being perpetuated by the Muslim leaders in the region to abuse human rights. Not so incidentally, authors of both books currently reside in the U.S.
Maryam and Marziyeh wrote, “…though being a Christian was not a crime, converting from Islam to another faith and evangelizing on behalf of that faith were considered crimes of apostasy and punishable by death.” Both of them were sent to Evin prison in Tehran for this reason.
They wrote, “Before school every morning we would line up to listen to one of the older children read the Koran in Arabic. They chanted, ‘Death to America! Death to Israel!’ though we had no idea what ‘America’ and ‘Israel’ were. All we knew was that they were unspeakably evil.”
Marziyeh wrote, “I did not accept the image of God that many Muslims have as one who harshly rules over the human race and punishes us for the slightest sins. That is a terrifying image of God.” No wonder so many of the women inmates the two authors met in prison were hungry to learn about Jesus Christ!
They continued, “Many of the prisoners went through the motions of Islam because they felt they had no choice. Yet every day we saw the power of Christ at work, drawing these broken, frightened, sinful people to Himself with a message of hope, strength, and forgiveness. More important, the prisoners felt His power, too.” “Anyone who says Islam is a religion of peace and equality should spend a week with the prisoners of Evin…”
They wrote of a young woman, “Married against her will while scarcely in her teens – in the Islamic tradition. Beaten and abused from the beginning by her husband, who acted with impunity – in the Islamic tradition…”
Because of the vivid memories from my childhood of how my own father had repeatedly abused my mother, I have little tolerance for anyone that justifies violence against another human being. The choice of these books reflects my desire to better understand Islam as a religion and the horrific impact it has been having on humanity – for centuries.
It is interesting to see that the harshest critics of Islam come from Islamic countries. Contrary to the lies that Muslims tell themselves about America as being evil, I can attest to the fact that nothing could be further from the truth. I came to America as an immigrant in 1972. For over four decades, I have been privileged to observe this country up close and personal. While this country is not perfect by any stretch of imagination – what human endeavor is ever without imperfections? – there is no doubt in my mind that this is still the greatest country on earth – with religious freedom for all. For now.
With sharia law having been allowed to be implemented in some parts of this country, however, looking into the future, I’m afraid that a religious war is inevitable – unless a strong leader, the next President of the United States of America – puts a stop to this utter nonsense where Muslims are empowered to expand influence in this country through their own religious law.
What has been happening in this country for the last several years is akin to welcoming Hitler’s Nazi Germany into the United States of America with open arms. Evil is not just a concept for me. I have seen it growing up and know what it does to people. From my vantage point in today’s world, where the majority of the unspeakable violence is being perpetrated by Muslims, it would take a miracle to convince me that Islam is a religion of peace, as some politically-correct politicians – as well as those who have never experienced evil up close in their personal lives – would like us to believe. If you still don’t understand the gravity of this issue, look no further than today’s Middle Eastern countries and how millions of people are being forced out of their homes and migrating into Europe. Many of them come from the countries ruled by sharia law or about to be. Is that what you want for America and for future generations of Americans?
Open your eyes, people! Evil already has one foot inside our door and is getting ready to knock it down. Once we allow it in, there is no turning back. Study what our Founding Fathers did for you and me, and why. Study how many lives were sacrificed to make this country the envy of the rest of the world for you and me, and why. Study the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights, how they were created for you and me, and why.
Lastly, one of the most interesting and significant paragraphs in the book, “Captive in Iran,” were found on page 237, followed by page 250:
- Page 237:
- He paused awkwardly, then continued, “Let me say that I have nothing against your faith. In fact, to some extent I also believe in Christ, and there are a lot of verses in the Koran that confirm the things about Christ that you believe in.”
- Note by this blogger: “He” is Mr. Ramezani, later revealed as an Iranian bureaucrat, a Muslim, who worked within the system to help the two authors.
- “My beliefs are not like other Muslims,” he commented. “I disagree with what they do. If I said a word about it, it would definitely get me into trouble.”
- He (Mr. Ramezani) asked us to read Surah 90 from the Koran and tell him what it meant to us the next time we saw him. “I interpret the verse to say that Jesus is a savior,” he said. Marziyeh and I (Maryam) said we would look it up.
- He paused awkwardly, then continued, “Let me say that I have nothing against your faith. In fact, to some extent I also believe in Christ, and there are a lot of verses in the Koran that confirm the things about Christ that you believe in.”
- Page 250:
- As we sat down, our visitor (Mr. Ramezani) asked, “Did you read the verse in the Koran that I asked you to read?”
- “Yes, but we didn’t understand it,” Marziyeh said. “There was nothing in it about Jesus. We think that most of the verses in the Koran that refer to Jesus are the part known as the Nessa. Is that what you meant?”
- “No, I gave you the right verse. Did you pay attention to it?”
- “We could only read the Farsi (Persian language) translation,” I said. “The verse is written in Arabic and we don’t understand Arabic.” It is said that the miracle of the Koran is in its original Arabic. True Muslims are supposed to read it only in the original language.
- “I see,” Mr. Ramezani said. “You should have concentrated on the Arabic text, which indicates that this – Surah 90 – is the verse in the Koran that refers to Jesus not only as the Son of God but also as the Savior of mankind. Furthermore, the Muslims have changed its meaning in Persian so that you don’t get an accurate reading in Farsi.”
Again, the two books – “Son of Hamas” and “Captive in Iran” – were written by those from two completely different counties in the Middle East. Yet both separately and independently point to the same solution: Jesus Christ. I have a feeling that there are a lot more books out there that point to the same conclusion.
I also think that the majority of the Muslims are like Mr. Ramezani or, for that matter, the rest of us in the world. We all want to live in peace.
As I think of my peaceful existence in America, for which I am eternally grateful, I cannot help but think of my favorite “throw blanket,” which we bought at the Billy Graham Library in Charlotte, North Carolina, and is placed on a sofa in our living room. It says, “One Nation under God.” Of course, this phrase is part of the Pledge of Allegiance of the United States of America, which reads: “I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.” Every time I recite it, I am reminded of the sacrifices endured by the forefathers of this great nation to make my heaven on earth – the United States of America – possible.
Wishing you peace.
