bestcurrentnews 2024 Ramadan Prayer

Fasting…Without Grace

There is often a debate in Western nations regarding celebrating Christian holidays. For instance, should one wish a stranger “Merry Christmas” or “Happy Holidays” since you do not know if that individual celebrates Christmas? Although you could offend someone by failing to guess their preferred greeting somehow, you do not have to fear punishment. The same is not true for non-Muslims and even moderate Muslims during Ramadan in some Islamic nations.

Pakistan enacted the Ehtram-e-Ramazan ordinance in 1981, prohibiting anyone from eating in public places during fasting hours. If someone breaks the law, they can be fined and/or jailed for three months. In addition, the person serving someone breaking the Ramadan fast can also be fined and/or jailed. Keep in mind Muslims must abstain from both food and water during daylight hours, even when Ramadan occurs during hot weather. In 2013, a man who violated the ordinance for selling the food “paan” was sentenced to five days in prison, but it took him six years to finally get out of jail.

In July 2014, two Iranian men were flogged in public for eating during the fasting hours. The police chief of Iran’s Fars Province said that eating in public is a crime forbidden by Islamic law and that police will act against violators. Each of the men received 80 lashes.

This year, in Nigeria, the Islamic police, known as Hisbah, arrested eleven Muslims for eating during the fasting hours. Other nations that have penalties against eating or drinking during the day in Ramadan include Oman, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, and Jordan. Punishments in those nations range from flogging in Saudi Arabia to fines and imprisonment. Some laws apply only to Muslims, but others apply to everyone.

Azad, an anonymous Pakistani ex-Muslim, writes, “Over the past few years, religious intolerance has grown in Pakistan. Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) is an Islamist extremist political party founded in 2015 that has become more and more prominent. This party openly calls for the murder of apostates and even for the execution of Muslims who commit acts deemed by the TLP as unIslamic. Ex-Muslims and religious minorities like Ahmadi Muslims and Hindus are all living in a state of constant fear as the Islamists grow in numbers and influence. During Ramadan, even non-Muslims are forced to remain hungry and thirsty because they fear Muslim majoritarianism.”

PRAYER

Muslims are ending this 30-day fast on Tuesday evening, April 9. Imagine fasting for 30 days during daylight hours without food and water, and in many places in the world, eating a morsel of food during daylight hours could bring severe punishment. This past week, a boy was beaten in a Chicago, Illinois, mosque because he was eating food in the bathroom. Muslims live under a strict law, with no grace given.

Thank God, as believers in Christ, we have been saved by grace and serve a God of grace and mercy. As we pray for Muslims:

  • Ask our Lord to give the Muslim people a revelation of His grace in the months to come, an understanding that Jesus longs to pour out His grace in every area of their lives, and give them a revelation of the wonders of His eternal love, bringing them to salvation in Christ!
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Cultural Displacement

This weekend marked a rare intersection of Easter, Passover, and Ramadan holidays. Although Easter and Passover often fall on the same weekend, they only coincide with Ramadan about once every thirty years. 

The intersection of the three holidays has caused a stir in Britain due to the presence of Ramadan lights wishing Muslims a “Happy Ramadan,” while nothing was displayed for Easter. Along with Britons expressing their displeasure on social media, Alex Phillips of TalkTV said, “This (London) is the capital city of the United Kingdom, a Christian country. That is still our state religion, whether you follow it or not – and we’ve got a big Islamic festival being celebrated on the main, most important thoroughfares … it’s insane. [In places like Syria and Afghanistan,] they don’t let us put our Christmas lights up, do they? Christianity makes us the country we are today; it underpins our cultural values. This is insane. It is insulting.”

London is not the only major European city marking Ramadan. In Germany, Frankfort and Cologne put up Ramadan lights, and in Norway, the city of Oslo decorated a central street with crescent moons. In the U.S., Brooklyn, New York, has a 20-block Ramadan display in Bay Ridge, and Nassau Community College hosted the “first ever Muslim Lights Fest on Long Island.”

Perhaps another Briton best summed up this new trend in Western nations when he wrote, “Ramadan lights at Easter. This is cultural displacement.”

PRAYER

It is reported that a past leader made this observation: “When Muslims are the minority they are concerned with minority rights, when they are in the majority there are no minority rights.” Secularism creates a spiritual vacuum that Islam fills in Western nations.

Often leaders in Western nations will compromise because they want to prevent any religious violence and therefore they will permit things taking place by and for Muslims that they would never permit the promotion of it by Jews or Christians. Leaders and citizens need the wisdom of God in decisions they face regarding Islam, rather than responding to the situations with fear. 

  • Pray for leaders to respond in a Christ-centered way and in the best interest of their nation. 
  • Pray for Muslims in Western nations to be drawn to sound, Bible-believing churches to hear the gospel’s truth and hunger to know more about Jesus Christ and His love for them.
bestcurrentnews 2024 Ramadan Prayer

Islam’s Works: Shahada

Islam is a works-based religion. To go to paradise, Muslims need to adhere to all of the five pillars, and even then, their ultimate fate is up to the will of Allah.

Ramadan is only one of the five pillars of Islam. These pillars are five basic acts considered mandatory by Muslims. A list of the pillars is found in the hadith, (Sahih al-Bukhaari, Volume 1, Book 2, Number 8):

Allah’s Messenger said: Islam is based on (the following) five (principles):

  1. To testify that none has the right to be worshipped but Allah, and Muhammad is Allah’s Messenger.
  2. To offer the (compulsory congregational) prayers dutifully and perfectly.
  3. To pay Zakat (i.e., obligatory charity).
  4. To perform Hajj. (i.e., Pilgrimage to Mecca)
  5. To observe fast during the month of Ramadan.

The first pillar is a confession of faith called the shahada. The confession must be declared in Arabic and be said with conviction and an understanding of its meaning. The first part, “there is no god but Allah,” declares that only Allah can be worshipped, and that Allah has no partner or son. The second part declares that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah. It should be noted that you do not become a Muslim by simply pronouncing the words in Arabic. The oral declaration is a reflection of belief that is held in one’s heart.

The complete “shahada” does not appear in the Qur’an. It is actually found in Sura 9:31 and in Sura 33:40. As soon as a baby is born into a Muslim family, these words are whispered into his ears, and if possible, a Muslim is encouraged to repeat the words as he is dying.

PRAYER

It is helpful for us to be reminded that they become Muslims by their works, Thank God,  Christians receive salvation through faith in Christ. 

The Islamic religion requires Muslims to pray five times a day. In an Islamic nation (and even in a few American cities), they hear the call to pray from loudspeakers at the mosque five times a day. A man 50 years old has listened to this piercing call 90,000 times. The power of repetition is deceptive. Repeating a doctrine that many times becomes ingrained in the mind and is perceived as truth. Even with all this, they still feel empty and alone! Muslims need a relationship with Jesus to fill that void. 

God says to take every thought captive to the light and obedience of Christ. Pray for Muslims that the truth of Christ will prevail over this deception.

bestcurrentnews 2023 Ramadan Prayer

Religion or Politics

The world’s population reached 8 billion people on November 15, 2022. Of those 8 billion people, Christianity and Islam are the two religions with the greatest number of followers worldwide. By mid-2023, it is projected there will be over 2.6 billion Christians (32.5%) and 2 billion Muslims (25%).

We have demonstrated some theological differences that make it clear that Christians and Muslims do not worship the same god. However, Islam is unique in the way it attempts to treat those who are not Muslims which makes Islam more than a religion; it also makes it a political system.

Religion is defined as “belief in, worship of, or obedience to a supernatural power or powers considered to be divine.” Politics, however, can be defined as “the use of strategy or intrigue in obtaining power, control or status.” Religion is between a follower and their god. Politics is between men.

Once Muhammad migrated from Mecca to Medina, his message evolved from primarily religious to political and militaristic. In the first 13 years of Islam (the Mecca period), Islam averaged 11 to 12 converts per year; however, in the Medina period, Islam averaged around 10,000 new Muslims yearly. Dr. Bill Warner from Political Islam estimates based on the number of followers during the Mecca period as opposed to the Medina period of Muhammad’s life, Islam’s success as a religion during Muhammad’s lifetime was about 0.3%. Still, its success as a political system was 99.7%. If Islam had remained only a religion, it would not exist today.

The difference between the religion of Islam and the politics of Islam is found in its treatment of the “kafirs.” Kafir is translated from Arabic as “unbeliever”; however, the translation does not accurately confer the meaning.  Kafir refers to “people who reject Allah or deny or hide the truth revealed by Him. One who knowing what is true decides to forget the evidence, decides to sidetrack, deceive himself.” Kafir refers to all non-Muslims – Christians, Jews, Hindus, Buddhists, pagans, atheists, etc., and political Islam seeks to control non-Muslims.

There are some positive verses in the Qur’an about the kafirs, such as sura 109:6, “You to your religion and me to my religion.” Still, the overwhelming majority of verses (around 97%) about kafirs are quite negative. According to Islam, kafirs are ignorant (sura 6:111), disgraced (sura 37:18), cursed (sura 33:60-61), can be killed (sura 4:91),  raped (Ishaq 759), stolen from (Bukhari 5, 59, 537), crucified (sura 5:33), made war on (sura 9:29), and annihilated (sura 6:45). 64% of the Qur’an, 81% of the Sira, and 32% of the Hadith are about the kafir. Overall 60% of the Islamic texts deal with the kafir, which means the majority of Islam is political rather than religious.

PRAYER POINT

The Best Current News Ramadan Series is primarily to pray for Muslims to have their spiritual eyes opened and see and receive Jesus Christ as Lord. A secondary purpose is to inform Christians about the beliefs of Islam because 2/3 of people in the United States (and other Western nations) believe we all worship the same God. This is contrary to what is taught by God in His Holy Scriptures. Today, pray that Muslims will receive a revelation of Christ, and Christians will learn that the beliefs of Islam are the opposite of the Truth of God, giving them a burden to pray for and reach out to Muslims with the gospel of Christ.

bestcurrentnews 2016 Ramadan Prayer

Islam: Religion or Politics?

2016 Ramadan GraphicReligion is defined as “belief in, worship of, or obedience to a supernatural power or powers considered to be divine.” Politics, however, can be defined as “the use of strategy or intrigue in obtaining power, control or status.” Religion is between a follower and their god. Politics is between men.

Once Muhammad migrated from Mecca to Medina, his message evolved from primarily a religious one to a political and militaristic one. In the first 13 years of Islam (the Mecca period) Islam averaged 11 to 12 converts per year, however in the Medina period Islam averaged around 10,000 new Muslims per year. Dr. Bill Warner from PoliticalIslam.com estimates based on the number of followers during the Mecca period as opposed to the Medina period of Muhammad’s life Islam’s success as a religion during Muhammad’s lifetime was about 0.3%, but its success as a political system was 99.7%. If Islam had remained only a religion, it would not exist today.

The difference between the religion of Islam and the politics of Islam is found in its treatment of the “kafirs.” Kafir is translated from the Arabic as “unbeliever,” however the translation does not accurately confer the meaning. Kafir refers to “people who reject Allah or deny or hide the truth revealed by Him. One who knowing what is true, decides to forget the evidence decides to sidetrack, deceive himself.”  Kafir refers to all non-Muslims – Christians, Jews, Hindus, Buddhists, pagans, atheists, etc., and political Islam seeks to control non-Muslims.

There are some positive verses in the Qur’an about the kafirs such as Sura 109:6 “you to your religion and me to my religion,” but the overwhelming majority of verses (around 97%) about kafirs are quite negative. According to Islam kafirs are ignorant (Sura 6:111), disgraced (Sura 37:18), cursed (Sura 33:60-61), can be killed (Sura 4:91), raped (Ishaq 759), stolen from (Bukhari 5, 59, 537), crucified (Sura 5:33), made war on (Sura 9:29) and annihilated (Sura 6:45).

PoliticaIIslam.com has done a statistical study of the texts of Islam. The study reveals 64% of the Qur’an, 81% of the Sira, and 32% of the Hadith is about the kafir. Overall 51% of the Islamic texts deal with the kafir, which means the majority of Islam is political rather than religious.

Prayer Point:

Pray that western Christians will wake up to the realization that they are not infringing upon a Muslim’s religious rights when they question the aggression of the politics of Islam in western society.

bestcurrentnews Islamization of the West

The Gradual Islamization of the West: Education Part One – Accommodation

BCN Public School Battle Map Screen ShotThe Cato Institute features an illuminating interactive map on their website labeled the Public Schooling Battle Map. This particular map marks conflicts within the American public schools from 2001 through 2013. Such conflicts include disagreements concerning curriculum, freedom of expression, human origins, moral values, reading material, and religion.

As the map illustrates, conflicts regarding the education of children are numerous and widespread. Of particular interest to Christians are conflicts regarding religion in schools. The map below spotlights those conflicts that are defined as, “disputes involving the presence of religion in schools, either through employees, students, or outside groups.”

BCN Public School Battle Map Religion Screen ShotMost of the disputes marked have occurred when schools and/or districts have disallowed elements of Christianity i.e. Christian prayer, Christian hymns sung during “holiday” programs, etc. The justification often cited for disallowing a Christian influence is the misapplication of the separation of church and state. There is, however, a double standard in the way religions are being handled in U.S. public schools. While Christianity’s influence is increasingly diminished within the public schools, Islam’s influence is escalating.

A glaring example of Islam’s favored status was reported by ESPN from a public high school in Dearborn, Michigan. In 2010, Ramadan, a month long time of daylight fasting observed worldwide by Muslims, happened to coincide with the beginning of football practice for the Fordson High School team.  The team, winner of four state titles, after receiving “approval of school and district administrators and the blessings of players, parents and police” scheduled their practice sessions from 11 pm to 4 am so that Muslim players, who are allowed to eat and drink after sunset, could participate. The New York Times attempted to equate the religious accommodation for Muslims during Ramadan to Brigham Young University’s refusal to play athletic events on Sunday because of their religious convictions. However, this comparison fails to recognize the stark difference between a decision by a privately owned university and a publicly funded high school.

Accommodations for Muslim students are not only limited to the United States. Last April, The Guardian reported three quarters of the schools supported under the Waltham Forest Council (a school system in Britain) serve only halal meat despite the fact that Muslims only make up about 15% of the population of the area. Halal meat is slaughtered using Islamic standards including pronouncing the name of Allah during the slaughter. Only one school in the area serves both halal and non-halal meat. The schools that are serving halal meat to non-Muslim children report that the decision is based upon logistics since many school kitchens are not large enough to store and prepare two types of meat.

Valley Park Middle School in Toronto, Canada allows approximately 400 Muslim students to attend imam-led prayers in the school’s cafeteria. The 30-minute prayer service takes place every Friday from November to March – the months in the Islamic calendar when Islamic prayer times are during class times.  The school agreed to the arrangement after large numbers of Muslim students were leaving on Friday afternoons to attend afternoon prayer at a local mosque, but then were not returning to school following the short prayer session.  Imagine western school systems allowing Christian prayer sessions during Advent or Lent, which would certainly be equal treatment, but most likely meet with much opposition.

The prayer sessions began in 2008, and are currently still continuing. The sessions remained without scrutiny until July of 2011 when Muslim, Tarek Fatah, the founder of the Muslim Canadian Congress, raised objections to the treatment of young girls in the prayer sessions.  The Toronto Sun quotes Fatah, “My concern is the Toronto District School Board (is) using tax money to tell girls they are second-class citizens.” The prayer sessions are set up in a traditional Islamic fashion with boys in the front and girls behind them. Strict Islamic tradition dictates that menstruating young women are considered unclean and are sent to the back of the room. Fatah is further quoted as saying, “It’s a fearful time for a young woman to get her first period, and right at that time you have this man (the Imam) telling them they are unclean. That should not happen in Canada.”

In November of 2011, Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi, host of “Shariah and Life” – a television program broadcast on Al Jazeera with an estimated audience of 60 million and chief religious scholar for IslamOnline, encouraged Muslims to adopt the concept of gradualism. Gradualism is the policy of advancing toward a goal by gradual, often slow stages.  Qaradawi wrote, “Gradualism is one of the laws of nature that Allah Almighty has created. It is also needed in applying the ruling of Shariah to make a change in people’s life.”

The greatest threat to western society is not through open war with Islamists, but through the gradual indoctrination of westerners. What may appear to someone who is not familiar with the teachings of Islam as an accommodation is actually a surrender of the freedom of thought and religion to a system that does not allow such freedom.

Prior to his arrest in August of 2013, Mohamed Badi, former Supreme Guide of the Muslim Brotherhood worldwide, outlined the six phases of the Brotherhood’s plans to rule the world:

  1. Sharia over the individual
  2. Sharia over the family
  3. Sharia over the society
  4. Sharia over the government
  5. Resurrection of the Caliphate
  6. Mastership of the world

When western public schools disallow Christian prayers and Christmas programs, yet embrace and encourage Islamic prayer and traditions, they are already operating under Islamic sharia law.

In the next few months Best Current News will be exploring other methods Islamists are using to subvert the hearts and minds of our greatest blessings – our children.