I have been asked yet again “what is true Islam?”

True or real Islam is the way of living that the ‘Messenger of Allah' (Muhammad) practiced and taught, as it is understood by the majority of Muslims today. It is the Islam of the correctly interpreted Qur’an, the interpretation that takes into account the theology of abrogation (nasikh) as defined in the Qur’an and in the aHadith.

However, we see Muslims practising Islam in very different ways from each other and that often results in confusion among those of us with Judeo-Christian cultural origins, and leads consequently to a variety of different viewpoints. Not every Muslim is a radical fundamentalist, and not every Muslim is a moderate, and there is a lot that is hidden that unbelievers are not privvy to either.

Many Muslims living among us are peaceful people and simply want to get on with going to work, earning a living, and enjoying raising their families. They express horror at the acts of terrorists and have no wish to be killed either. Some could be described as more “Islam by culture” than “Islam by religion”, but that in itself is confusing since Islam does not separate religion, culture and politics in the way that church and state are separate in western society. It is also quite possible that many Muslims living in the western world are not particularly literate in their own faith, and have a genuine preference for the revelations of Muhammad from his Mecca period rather than those of his Medina period. The former are the more tolerant and peaceful revelations whereas the latter most certainly are not. And some Muslims would be called apostates by their more devout Muslim brothers.

We are constantly hearing that Islam is a peaceful religion - even Prince Charles seems to prefer this idea, and it is all too easy to assume that he must be well informed being who he is. But in that I must disagree. To believe anything on such flimsy credentials is very unwise and will quickly lead to error. I don’t wish you to accept my opinions either although I am reasonably well read on the subject. Instead, I point to the writings of authors whose credentials are worthy of respect, and to the evidence of the Qur’an and aHadith themselves. To listen to the explanations of Muslims themselves one must be cautious. Islam espouses “holy hypocrisy” or the practice of taqiyya which allows Muslims to deceive and give a false rendition of truth - or simply not tell the truth when it suits their cause not to do so.

So what is the real Islam?

The name itself tells all. Islam means “submission” and what is meant is submission, total and universal, to the will of Allah.
The problem we are facing is that of the aggressive encroachment of Islam into the West with the intention of whole world domination - total submission of all people everywhere to the worship of Allah - and to make sharia law universal. This is the real Islam, the Islam of the Qur’an.

Islam Undressed by Vernon Richards

The link above takes you to an excellent e-book that provides a critical analysis of “real Islam”, its people, culture, philosophy, and practices of yesterday and today. I recommend it as an answer to further questions on the subject of Islam.
As well as that, read the Qur’an and aHadith and be your own judge of what you find.

Knowing the true facts regarding Islam does not have to make a person a hater of Muslims. It is very important not to fall into that trap, hating the person because one does not share the same beliefs and has an objection, no matter how strong, to those beliefs. I am dismayed by what I read in the Qur’an - dismayed and frustrated by the misrepresentation of Judeo-Christian scriptures, the misinterpretations and distortions, and the amount of hatred and violence I find there. That is not the kind of world that I want to live in, and not the kind of way that I want to behave towards others myself. I do not hate Muslims, and I would far rather that they open their minds, hearts and souls to the truth and love of the real Jesus, not ‘Isa as they believe Him to be, and come to know for themselves that unlike Allah, our God is both righteous and full of immeasurable love.