If you go up to the top of Kahlenberg, a hill facing the city of Vienna and the locality used as the headquarters for the Ottoman Army in 1095 (1683) during the besiegement of Vienna, you will see a memorial there. There is a sentence on it which reads: "May God protect us against the malevolence of the plague and the Turks," and a picture which falsely depicts the Turks slaughtering Christian women and children. During that time, the Turks were introduced as the most savage, cruel and tyrannical nation in the world by the Christians. They believed that "Islam, the religion of savagery, caused the Turks to be so." According to the Christians, if the Turks had become Christian, they would not have been so "cruel" and "tyrannical." Those who claimed that Islam was the religion of savagery were the Christian men of religious authority, who were the judges, the tyrants, and the dictators of that time. In school, during the lessons, these wrong impressions were given to Christian children. This terrible claim and calumny has continued for ages, even up to now. The paragraphs below are in a book by Ishaq Effendi of Harput (rahimahullahu ta'ala), which were quoted from a book written against Islam by a Christian man of religious authority and published in 1860.

"Hadrat Jesus always communicated his religion to the people affectionately, in a kind and mild way, and by finding a remedy for their troubles. That is why, as soon as Christianity appeared, five hundred people became Christian in a few years. In contrast, Islam, a religion of savagery, was accepted under force with a fear of being killed. In other words, people were cruelly forced to become Muslim. Muhammad ('alaihi 's-salam) tried to disseminate the religion of Islam by using force, by frightening people, and by declaring holy wars against others. That is the reason why the number of Muslims who were converted to Islam solely by means of preaching was only about 180 after thirteen years had passed from the day he declared himself to be a prophet. This is enough to show the difference between Christianity, the true and kind religion, and Islam, the religion of savagery. Christianity is a perfect and humane religion that comes into the hearts of people by way of mercy, benevolence and without any force. It is clearly understood that Christianity is really the true and only religion through the fact that when Christianity appeared, the previous religion, Judaism, a monotheist religion, disappeared. It is necessary for the previous religions to disappear when Allahu ta'ala sends a new Prophet. Since the Jews did not believe in Christianity they met with many troubles, and became trifling and despised. It is so because the sending of a new Prophet means that the previous religions are corrupt. On the other hand, after Muhammad ('alaihi 's-salam) had brought Islam, Christianity did not disappear, and neither Christianity nor Judaism met with any calamities; on the contrary, they spread even further. Even though the Muslims did their best for Islam, massacred nations and destroyed churches (e.g. four thousand churches were pulled down during the time of the Khalif Umar), the number of Christians has been increasing day by day, and getting richer and richer. But, what about the Muslims? They have been experiencing great difficulties, getting poorer and poorer, while loosing their importance and prestige all over the world."

Together with Ishaq Effendi, we too have given the answer below to the slanderous lies above:

First of all, the information and the numbers above given by the priest are not correct. The holy book of Islam, the Qur'an al-karim says: "There is no compulsion in religion." Hadrat Muhammad (sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam) communicated the religion of Islam without using any force or by frightening the public. The number of people who willingly became Muslim increased in a short time. Our assertion is proven by means of an explanation written by priest Sala, a translator of the Qur'an al-karim, and a Christian historian. (George Sala died in 1149 [1736 A.D]. He was an English priest. He translated the Qur'an al-karim into the English language in 1734. He wrote a great deal of information about the Islamic religion in the foreword of his book.). This is what was said in his Translation of the Qur'an, which was published in 1266 (1850 A.D.): "Before the hegira there was not a house left without a Muslim in Medina." This is to say that, until that time, the people living in cities became Muslim without seeing any sword. They became Muslim because of seeing the greatness of Islam, its honesty, and the eloquence of the Qur'an al-karim. The accurate numbers below prove that the religion of Islam rapidly spread. When Hadrat Muhammad (sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam) passed away, the number of Muslims was about 124,000. Four years later, after the passing of Hadrat Muhammad (sall-Allahu ta'ala 'alaihi wa sallam), Hadrat Umar formed a Muslim army of 40,000. With this army, he conquered Iran, Syria, Egypt and Anatolia as far as the city of Konya. Hadrat 'Umar (radi Allahu ta'ala anh) never inflicted cruelty. He never tyrannized the Christians or Zoroastrians living in the countries he captured from the hands of cruel dictators. His justice has been approved of by everyone, friend or enemy, all over the world. Most of the people living in those countries converted to Islam willingly after seeing the justice, and the perfect morality in this religion. The number of those who stayed in their invalid religions, that is, following Christianity, Judaism, and Magianism, was very small. Hence, it has been unanimously written by historians that in ten years, which is a very short time, the Muslim population in the Muslim countries reached approximately twenty to thirty million. Far from destroying four thousand churches, when he entered the city of Jerusalem and was asked which church he wanted to convert into a mosque, he rejected that proposal outright, and he performed his first prayers outside a church. Three hundred years later, after Hadrat 'Isa (Jesus Christ) had ascended, Constantin I. converted to Christianity. With his service and even with force, the population of Christians reached only six million. The Jews, who did not convert to Christianity were stoned, and their ears were cut with the orders of Constantin.

Regarding his claim that the appearance of Christianity brought about the disappearance of Judaism and a tremendous amount of suffering upon the Jews, this Christian man of religious authority does not seem to have enough knowledge on history or to have even examined it at all. Judaism had been corrupted long before Christianity appeared, and the city of Jerusalem was burned and destroyed by the Assyrian ruler Buhtunnasar (604-561 B.C.), and later on, by the Romans. After that, the Jewish people were scattered and could not reassemble themselves. Since all these events happened before the appearance of Christianity, no relation can be drawn between them. Today, as we are about to enter the twenty-first century, we see a powerful Jewish state in front of us. Obviously, in spite of Christianity, Judaism is still alive. As a matter of fact, before the establishment of today's new Jewish state, there were Jewish men at the heads of many sources of great fortune -the mass media and the greatest industrial corporations of Europe. Moreover, Jewish lawyers have been highly esteemed all over the world. From among the Jews, Lord DISRAELI, became one of the richest men in England, as well as a prime minister of the British Empire. Rotalid, a Jew, is the richest man of the world. Even today, most of the stock-exchanges and companies in Europe and in the U.S.A. are controlled by Jews. In short, this Christian's claim: "As soon as Christianity appeared Judaism disappeared, and the Jews met with many calamities," is completely false. Perhaps, it is something imaginary formed from his mind.

Christian men of religious authority claim that Christianity is based on love, mercy, compassion, helping one another and so on. But what about the facts on the 169 th page of the Turkish translation of the Holy Bible, published in 1303 (1886) in Istanbul. I showed some verses from this page, which consisted of the 10-18 th verses of the twentieth chapter of the Book of Deuteronomy, to a Christian neighbor of mine. This page states as follows:

"When thou comest nigh unto a city to fight against it, then proclaim peace unto it. And it shall be, if it make thee answer of peace, and open unto thee, then it shall be, that all the people that is found therein shall be tributaries unto thee, and they shall serve thee. And if it will make no peace with thee, but will make war against thee, then thou shalt besiege it: And when the Lord thy God hath delivered it into thine hands, thou shalt smite every male thereof with the edge of the sword: But the women, and the little ones, and the cattle, and all that is in the city, even all the spoil thereof, shalt thou take unto thyself; and thou shall eat the spoil of thine enemies, which the Lord thy God hath given thee. Thus shalt thou do unto all the cities which are very far off from thee, which are not of the cities of these nations. But of the cities of these people, which the Lord thy God doth give thee for an inheritance, thou shalt save alive nothing that breatheth. But thou shalt utterly destroy them; namely the Hittites, and the Amorites, the Cananites, and the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites; As the Lord thy God hath commanded thee. That they teach you not to do after all their abominations, which they have done unto their gods; so should ye sin against the Lord your God." These verses quoted from the Bible mean:

When you approach a city to fight against them, you should first call the inhabitants towards peace. If they agree to this, and open the gates, all the people in that city will be your slaves, after all, and they will serve you as long as they live. If they do not agree to your proposal for peace, if they fight against you, you should siege the city and when GOD, your Allah, grants you this city you should massacre all the men there. You should plunder all the women, children, animals and the other property for your own interest [that is, you should seize them]. Consequently, you should eat the property of your enemies granted by God, your Allah. Not only in this city, but you will do the same in all those other cities far away from you. You will leave nothing alive in those cities given to you as inheritance from God, your Allah. You will completely destroy the nations of the Hittee, Amoree, Ken'ani, Perizzi, Hivi, and Yebusee, in the way ordered by God, your Allah. Thus, they will not be able to teach you the way they worship their Gods. Otherwise, you will be judged to have revolted against God, your Allah.

Then, I said to my Christian neighbor, "A very cruel attitude is demanded of you in your Holy Bible over weak people. No relation is there between this order in the Holy Bible and the Christian compassion which is continuously repeated by you Christians. Where is your compassion and your taking pity on the public? This paragraph in the Holy Bible is a terrible example of savagery and cruelty. It means that your religion orders you to be savages. Nowhere in our holy book, the Qur'an al-karim, are there words that orders Muslims to treat our enemies in such a manner. On the contrary, the Qur'an al-karim often points out the way of compassion, mercy, and forgiveness. Then how can it be possible that your Christian men of religion are courageous enough to claim that the religion of Islam enjoins savagery, and that Christianity is a religion of compassion? look, here! This is a paragraph in your holy book, the Bible. That is to say, contrary to your claim, the Holy Bible orders savagery, barbarism, and cruelty. What do you think of it?"

He, my neighbor, began to answer by saying that he did not know of a paragraph like that in the Bible, and went on, "Yes, no relation is there between this paragraph and Hadrat Jesus. This is a paragraph taken from the book of the Torah of Hadrat Moses. The thing mentioned in this paragraph is an order given to the Jewish people by Allahu ta'ala in order for them to take their revenge from the Egyptians. During that time, the Egyptians did not believe in the true religion, Judaism, and they tried to kill Hadrat Moses. Upon this, Allahu ta'ala ordered the Jewish people to destroy and take revenge upon those nations written in that paragraph. This is the reason for that paragraph being in the Bible. There is no relationship between this paragraph and true Christianity." Then, I said to him, "Each religion has a holy book. Every follower of that religion has to believe that every word of every line in his holy book is completely correct, no matter from where or how a paragraph was derived or how the book was arranged. A holy book and all the writings in it must be believed in, if it is a book from Allahu with His orders. The holy book of the Christians is the Bible. That is why you have to believe that all the writings in it are the orders of Allahu ta'ala. You have no right to break your holy book into pieces by claiming that this paragraph is old, or that paragraph belongs to the Jews, or this paragraph does not concern Jesus, but instead Moses, and so on. You have no right to believe partially. You have to believe completely. If there is no relationship between Christianity and this paragraph in the Book of Deuteronomy that we have just read, your spiritual councils should have deleted this paragraph or declared the paragraph false and something attributed to the Bible later on. Since they have not done something like this, it means you have accepted this paragraph as an order from Allahu ta'ala. So, we must conclude that Christianity is a very cruel and savage religion. It orders you to massacre your enemies without mercy."

The Christian priest was extremely confused. He said he had never read the Holy Bible from beginning to end. He especially had no idea about the Old Testament. He was very surprised to hear of the paragraph we showed him. At last, he said, "You have made not only me, but all the Christian world blush. I am not a man of religion, and I must confess that I am not looked upon as pious. Up to now, I thought there were scriptures in the Bible counselling mercy, compassion and forgiveness only. This paragraph of blatant savagery has negatively influenced me. At the same time, as a priest, I feel more and more ashamed. When I return to my country, I shall transmit this case to the men of religion who have more knowledge than I. If possible, I shall apply to the necessary officials for the purpose of taking these verses out of the Bible. These verses must be false. Such a terrible order could not have been given by Allahu ta'ala. Maybe those verses were invented by a Jew." We tried to comfort him. We gave him our book Islam and Christianity, published in English. We also added, "If you read this book, you will see that there are more faults in the Holy Bible. (50) It states that there are as many as 20,000 errors in the Bible."

There are many verses in the Holy Bible which command cruelty and barbarity, yet the Christians believe this book was sent by Allahu ta'ala. Therefore, we would like to cite some of these verses so that they might serve as a lesson for the so-called innocent and compassionate Christians, who claim that Muslims are cruel and that Islam is a religion of brutality.

The twenty-third verse of the 23 rd chapter in the book of Exodus in the Old Testament says, "For mine Angels shall go before thee, and bring thee in unto the Amorites, and the Hitites, and the Perizzites, and the Cananites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites: and I will cut them off." And the twenty-fourth verse says," ....but thou shalt utterly overthrow them, and quite break down their images."

It is stated at the beginning of the thirty-first chapter of the book of Numbers: "And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying avenge the children of Israel of the Midianites." The seventh verse and the following ones say, "And they warred against the Midianites, and they slew all the males. And the children of Israel took all the women of Midian captives, and their little ones, and took the spoil of all their cattle, and all their flocks, and all their goods. And they burnt all their cities wherein they dwelt, and all their goodly castles, with fire."

It is said in the other verses of the same chapter that Moses ('alaihi 's-salam) was angry with his officers for they left the women alive, and he ordered all the women and children to be killed. Furthermore, it is reported that the number of the girls who were not killed was 32,000, (Verse: 34). Hence, can you imagine the number of those who were killed?

It is stated at the beginning of the seventh chapter in the book of Deuteronomy, When the Lord thy God shall bring thee into the land whither thou goest to possess it, and hath cast out many nations before thee, the Hittites, and the Girgashites, and the Amorites, and the Cananites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, seven nations greater and mightier than thou. And when the Lord thy God shall deliver them before thee; thou shalt smite them, and utterly destroy them; thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor shew mercy unto them."

This is written in the twenty-seventh verse of the thirty-second chapter in the book of Exodus: "And he [Moses] said unto them, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Put every man his sword by his side, and go in and out from gate to gate throughout the camp, and slay every man his brother, and every man his companion, and every man his neighbor."

It is written in the eighth verse of twenty-seventh chapter in the book of First Samuel: "And David and his men went up, and invaded the Geshurites, and the Gezrites, and the Amalekites: ...And David smote the land, and left neither man nor woman alive."

The eighth chapter of Second Samuel says that David killed twenty-two thousand Syrian men, then it is stated 18,000 men were killed. It is written at the end of the tenth chapter that David slew seven hundred chariots of the Syrians and forty thousand horsemen.

At the end of the twelfth chapter it says: "And he [David] brought forth the people that were therein, and put them under saws, and under harrows of iron, and under axes of iron, and made them pass through the brick-kiln: and thus did he unto all the cities of the children of Ammon."

It is written in the Old Testament that after Moses ('alaihi 's-salam), Joshua ('alaihi 's-salam) ordered millions of people to be killed.

This is said in the thirty-fourth verse of the tenth chapter in the book of Matthew, "For not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword."

The fifty-first verse of the twelfth chapter in the book of Luke says, "Suppose ye that I am come to give peace on earth? I tell you, Nay; but rather division."

Again in the book of Luke, the thirty-sixth verse of twenty-second chapter says, "Then said he unto them, but now, he that hath a purse, let him take it, and likewise his script; and he that has no sword, let him sell his garment, and buy one."

An honest person who reads the Holy Bible can see that it is full of horrible and cruel scenes, and all these are ascribed to the Prophets and the beloved servants of Allahu ta'ala.

Christians who followed the orders of this book, which is believed to be the word of Allahu ta'ala, committed many cruel and evil acts against Muslims, Jews, and even themselves. These acts are written down with blood in history books. The following is written on the twenty-seventh page of the book Kashf-ul-asar wa fi qisasi anbiya-i bani Israeel by the priest Alex Kcithin in English and translated into Persian language by the priest Marik: "The Great Constantin ordered the ears of all the Jews living in his section of the country to be cut off, and he banished them to different places."

The book Siyar-ul mutaqaddimin written by priests states: "After he had asked the opinion of his commanders, Gratienus, the Roman Emperor, ordered all the Jews in his country to convert to Christianity in the 372 nd year of the Christian era; otherwise, they would be killed."

The fact that 230,000 Protestants were massacred by the Catholics only because they did not want to follow the Pope is written in a book by priests and was published in Beirut in 1265 (1849 A.D.). Also the book Mirat-us-sidk, translated from English into the Urdu language by Thomas, a Catholic priest, and published in 1267 (1851 A.D.), states on pages forty-one to forty-two that 645 monasteries, 90 schools, 2376 churches and 110 hospitals were taken from the hands of the Catholics by the Protestants, and then they sold those building very cheaply. Upon an order given by Queen Elizabeth, most of the Catholic monks and the men of religious authority were taken away in ships and thrown into the sea. Many volumes of books were written describing the details of those cruelties and tragedies. These books written by priests prove that those Christians, who claim that Muslims are savage, are savage themselves.

Christian men of religion cannot find even one word in the Qur'an al-karim to prove that Islam is a religion of savagery. But, is not that paragraph in the Old Testament a proof for us to expose Christianity, not Islam, as the religion of barbarism? After they see that paragraph in the Bible which orders them to be savages, how can they claim that Islam is "the religion of savagery"? First of all, they should examine their holy book, then they should read about the atrocities written in their history books, committed by Christians under the name of "Christianity." Without a doubt, they will feel a little shame.

Now, let us cite some historical events which might be unknown to Christian men of religious authority. This is because, as it has been understood, they do not have enough time to study history. First, let me tell you about some historical events that are deemed to have been done on behalf of so-called human love, mercy and compassion by the Christians who also claim to be innocent, civilized and compassionate. We shall use the works of Christian historians, authors and priests as the sources for our historical information.

Those so-called innocent, civilized and compassionate Christians arranged the "Crusades" to save the holy lands of Hadrat Jesus and the city of Jerusalem from the hands of Muslims, whom they called barbarians. But, as a matter of fact, while the Christians were leading their lives in a half-wild manner, the Muslims were the most civilized people in the world and were advancing in medicine, science, agriculture and knowledge, while teaching these subjects to the rest of the world. Their great civilization brought them great riches and great comfort. Their living standard was so high that the Christians, who were half-hungry and half-naked, used to envy them. Consequently, the Christians set their minds on plundering rich Islamic countries. They found a cause for doing that: Hadrat Jesus' holy lands should be saved from the hands of the Muslims.

A sadistic, money-and-blood thirsty priest named Pierre l'Ermite encouraged people all over Europe to save Jerusalem by explaining that he had seen Hadrat Jesus in his dream crying out, "Set me free from the hands of the Muslims." He encouraged and provoked people in Europe to join the crusade to save Jerusalem. This call was a good opportunity for vagabonds. They joined in "the First Crusade (51)" arranged by this crazy priest, Pierre I'Ermite. The commanders of those vagabonds were the mad priest L'Ermite and the knight, poor Gautier. Their intention was to pillage property and valuable goods from the Muslim lands. These crusaders, who were nothing more than tramps, attempted to plunder their own countries before leaving. They robbed some cities in Germany. When they entered Istanbul, a very rich Byzantine city of that time, they plundered it without feeling pity for its Christian rulers. But after the first wave of wild crusaders were destroyed by the Saljukian Turks before arriving in Jerusalem, new crusaders appeared. Later on, the Crusades were seen as a matter of honor for the Christians. Accordingly, a huge Christian army was formed by combining the armies of great kings. As it is told, an army of one million people, or at least 600,000 people, prepared for an attack upon the East. The Crusades lasted 174 years, from 489 (1096) to 669 (1270), with eight different waves. Later on, some new Crusades were formed against the Turks, too. The Ottoman Turks fought against the crusaders in the cities of Nicopolis (Neighbolu) and Varna, and defeated them. Even the War of Balkan, which was carried out against the Turks in 1330 (1912/13), was declared a crusade by some fanatic Christians.

The German emperors Friedrich Barbarossa II, Konrad III, Heinrich VII; The King of Britain, Lion Hearted (Couer de Lion) Richard; the Kings of France, Philipp Auguste, Saint Louis; the King of Hungary, Andreas II; and some other kings or princes took part in the early Crusades. On their way to Jerusalem, they committed every kind of cruelty. Moreover, the Byzantine city of Istanbul, which was a capital city, was destroyed and plundered, even though the inhabitants were Christians. At last, they arrived in Jerusalem.

We have quoted the material below from a book by Christian Michaudin, who wrote a series of five volumes about the Crusades:

"In the year 492 (1099), the crusaders entered the city of Jerusalem successfully. As soon as they stepped into the city, they slaughtered 70,000 people among the Muslims and Jews. Muslim women and children who had gathered in their mosques were killed mercilessly. Human blood flooded the streets of the city and the streets were also blocked up with dead bodies. The crusaders were so blood thirsty that while they were on the shores of the Rhine in Germany, they slaughtered 10,000 Jews there." Not one woman or child was slaughtered in Vienna by the Muslim Turks. The picture hung on top of the hill is completely an imaginary one. But what a pity that the savagery that occurred in Jerusalem, as told by a Christian historian, is completely true.

In his book entitled Qisas-i Anbiya', Jevdet Pasha (rahimahullahu ta'ala) wrote: "The army of the crusaders entered the city of Jerusalem in 492 (1099). They massacred all the inhabitants of the city. They killed 70,000 Muslims who had gathered in a holy mosque called Masjid al-Aqsa. There were numerous defenseless imams, scholars, devotees, and old people among them. Those barbaric Christians plundered countless gold and silver oil lamps in a treasury near the well-known precious stone called "Sahra-tullah," and many other historical goods of which the value cannot be estimated. Many Syrian cities were captured by the crusaders who established a state called "The Kingdom of Jerusalem." The struggle between the Muslims and this kingdom lasted for a long time and hundreds of battles took place. At last, after many battles, Sultan Salahaddin-i (52) Ayyubi (rahimahullahu ta'ala) entered Jerusalem, after the Hattin victory, on a Friday, the twenty-first of Rajab in 583 (1186). He cleaned the cities of crusaders within a year. Hundreds of thousands of Muslims became free from the hands of the Christians. Afterwards, the Patriarch of Jerusalem, with the other bishops and priests went back to Europe wearing mourning dresses. They wandered in Europe. With propaganda, they encouraged people to take revenge. When the Pope heard the news of defeat, he died of sorrow. A new army of crusaders was established in Europe. Fredrick, the German Emperor; Philip, the King of France: and Richard, the King of Britain joined in with a great army of their own, bearing crosses on their breasts. However, they could not recapture Jerusalem. Malik Ashraf (rahima-hullahu ta'ala), the Sultan of Egypt, took back the city of Aqqa, which was a center for the crusaders, and some other cities in 690 (1290). As a result, the Crusades came to an end."

The city of Jerusalem remained in the hands of the Christians for 88 years, from 1099 to 1187; after that, the city was recaptured by Salahaddin-i Ayyubi. During that battle, Lion Hearted Richard was taken prisoner. But, Saladdin was very kind and compassionate towards him. He was treated as if he were still a king, not a prisoner of war. This is a great example proving the difference between Islam "a religion of barbarism!" and Christianity, "a religion of compassion!"

The charge that some churches were converted into mosques is correct. But, none of them was razed; on the contrary, they were repaired. Sultan Muhammad Khan the Conqueror (rahima-hullahu ta'ala) converted the church of St. Sophia into a mosque after he had conquered Istanbul. But, this was written as an article in the peace agreement. Surely, converting St. Sophia into a mosque was not an ordinary event, but it was one of the memorials representing a great victory granted to the Turks by Allahu ta'ala. Our Prophet (sall-Allahu ta'ala 'alaihi wa sallam) had prophesied that Istanbul would be conquered by the Muslims. For the commander and his soldiers who conquered it, this tradition was declared: "How lucky they are!" Sultan Muhammad Khan the Conqueror had to convert St. Sophia, the symbol of Christianity, into a mosque, which is a symbol of Islam. This was a declaration to the world that a new century had started with the conquest of Istanbul. Sultan Muhammad Khan the Conqueror never did any damage to St. Sophia. On the contrary, he repaired it. There is no order in the Qur'an al-karim to destroy churches. As you will see later on, Muslim governments have always protected churches and other places of worship from being attacked.

Now, we will mention an event involving converting a mosque into a church by Christians who deem themselves to be compassionate, innocent and merciful. The article below is quoted from a book called Spanien (Spain) prepared by Prince Salvator, Professor Graus, theologist Kirchberger, Baron von bibra and Ms. Threlfall. It was published in the city of Wurzburg, Germany, in the year 1312 (1894).

"One of the most important cities in Spain was Cordoba (its Arabic name Kurtaba). It was the capital city of the Arab Andalusian state. When the Muslims landed in Spain, during the year 95 (711), under the leadership of Tariq bin Ziyad (rahima-hullahu ta'ala), they made it their capital city. The Arabs brought civilization to this city. They completely civilized a place where the inhabitants had been living in a half-wild manner. They built a great palace, Alkazar (Alkasr), hospitals, and schools (madrassas). Furthermore, they founded a university there. It was the first university in Europe. During that time the Europeans were undeveloped in knowledge, science, medicine, agriculture and, in general, civilization. The Muslims brought science, civilization, and the knowledge of medicine to Europe. They were their teachers.

Abdurrahman (53) I (rahima-hullahu ta'ala), who established the Islamic State of Andalusia, wanted to build a very great mosque in Cordoba. He also wanted that mosque to be more beautiful, bigger and more magnificent than the ones in Baghdad. He chose the most appropriate place in Cordoba to build the mosque. The owner of that plot of land was a Christian. The money this man wanted for his land was exorbitant. While it was possible for him to use the plot by force, he did not do that. As a just Muslim ruler, he paid the money that the Christian wanted. The Christians built three small churches with that money. The construction of the mosque started in 169 (785). Abdurrahman I used to come to the construction site every day and work there himself for a few hours, just like a worker. The materials for the construction were brought from different Eastern countries. The best trees of Lebanon were used for the wooden parts; colored marble was brought from different Eastern countries; precious stones from Iraq and Syria were brought; pearls, emeralds, and ivory were piled up on that one spot. Everything was very nice and plentiful. The building of the mosque was going slowly, but magnificently day by day. Abdurrahman I did not live long enough to see the completion of the mosque. He died in 172 (788). The rulers after him, his son Hisham and grandson Alhakem I (rahime-humullahu ta'ala) strove to complete the construction of the mosque. It lasted for ten years. After that, every year, a new section was added to the mosque. Hence, it took its final form in 380 (990), that is, 205 years later. Alhakem (54) II had a golden mimber (pulpit) placed in the mosque in 366 (976 A.D.). Finally, the mosque was wonderful, magnificent and the most beautiful mosque of all. The mosque was a rectangle, 120x135 square meters. Two sides were extended ahead. Their lengths were about 135 meters. A courtyard was formed between these extended wings behind the main section of the mosque. There were 1419 pillars in the mosque. Each pillar was ten meters high. The pillars were made of the best marble in the world. The arches on top of the pillars were made of different colored marble. When you entered the mosque you felt as if you were lost among a forest of pillars.

Those looking at the headpieces on top of the pillars could not help admiring their beauty. And those who stepped into the mosque were fascinated. Up to that time, such beauty had never been seen anywhere in the world.

The mosque had twenty gates. Orange gardens were in front of each gate. The mosque was encircled by greenery. There were ponds, jets, and fountains everywhere. Many shadirvans (55) were built so that the Muslims could make ablution easily. Decoratively, the best marble and wood were used on the floor of the mosque. Apart from others, the precious wood of Lebanon was used to make the ceiling, presenting additional beauty and magnitude. There were very attractive carvings, embroideries, and calligraphies on the ceiling and walls. The mosque seemed to be a boundless forest of pillars. Enlightening the mosque were thousands of silver lamps emanating colorful light. In his book Neft-ut-teeb Mingasni Endulus-ir-rateeb, Ahmad Al-MaqQari (56) says that the number of lamps in the mosque was 7425, half of them were lit during the nights, but during the month of Ramadan and on the days of Iyd (religious holidays) and on holy nights all of them were lit. Twenty-four thousand kilos of oil were used in a year. Furthermore, 120 kilos of ambergis and aloes were burned to beautify the scent of the mosque.

There were headpieces in the shape of pomegranate on top of the minarets. Those headpieces were adorned with jewels, pearls and emeralds. The spaces between the stones were filled with gold. Two wonderful pictures of the mosque of Cordoba are in the book Munjid, written by Christians in Lebanon.

When the Christians invaded the Andalusian state in 897 (1492), as soon as they entered the city of Cordoba, they first attacked this mosque. They entered the mosque with their horses. The Muslims had sheltered themselves in the mosque, but they were completely slaughtered without any feelings of compassion. As a result, the blood of the Muslims flowed out of the gates. Then, they separated the golden mimbar (pulpit) into pieces and divided it among themselves. The small tables, made of ivory, were divided too. The wonderful Qur'an, adorned with pearls and emeralds, kept in the minbar (pulpit), which was one of the Qur'an al-Karims written by Hadrat Uthman (radi-Allahu ta'ala 'anh), was torn into pieces and stepped on. So, these two works, unique and wonderful, that is, the golden pulpit and the Qur'an al-karim, were completely destroyed. All the Muslims and Jews were forced to become Christian under the fear of swords by these savages. The Jews who escaped went to the Muslim State of Ottoman as refugees. Today's Turkish Jews are their descendants. In comparison, when the Muslims captured Christian cities, they never oppressed non-Muslims, Christians and Jews, nor did they prevent them from worshipping according to their own religion.

After the Christian Spaniards had savagely massacred all the Muslims and Jews, they began to destroy this unique mosque. First, they plundered the headpieces on top of the minarets, made in the shape of pomegranate and adorned with gold and emeralds. They replaced the headpieces with ones made of ordinary stones, in the shape of so-called angels. The unique and magnificent wooden carvings on the ceilings were pulled down. They broke the beautiful marble into pieces. They were replaced with ordinary stones. They destroyed the fabulous ornaments on the walls. They attempted to pull down the pillars in the mosque, but they could not extract all of them. The remaining pillars were painted with ordinary slaked lime. The total of the pillars pulled down numbered in the hundreds; they were piled up in the mosque. Most of the twenty gates were closed with stone walls. At last, with a final touch of barbarism, they decided to convert the mosque into a church by way of building a church in it, in the year 929 (1523). They needed the permission of the German Emperor Carlos the Fifth (57) to do this. Charles Quint rejected the proposal at first, but fanatical cardinals continuously insisted by saying that it was necessary for the sake of the religion. The leading cardinal, who had great influence, was Alonso Maurique. This cardinal also persuaded the Pope in this matter. Charles Quint had to finally acquiesce to the idea of converting the mosque into a church after seeing that the Pope desired it. So, the decision was given to build a church inside the mosque. During the construction of the church they pulled down some more pillars. The number of pillars left was about 812. That is to say that, at least, 600 precious marble pillars had been pulled down. The church, inside the mosque in the shape of a cross, 52x12 square meters, appeared rather ugly. Charles Quint came to Cordoba himself and saw the church. He felt very sorry. He said, "After seeing the barbarism you have thus far perpetrated, I have become quite regretful about letting you build the church. If I had known that you were going to ruin this beautiful building, the most unique in the world, I would not have given you permission, and I would have punished you instead. The church you have built here is an ordinary one which can be seen everywhere in the world. Whereas, it is impossible to build another mosque similar to this one." Today, tourists visiting this magnificent mosque, even though it has been considerably damaged, admire the beauty and greatness of this work of Islamic architecture. They feel pity over the church which seems to be a dwarf in the Middle of the Mosque, and they feel sorry about the fact that such a magnificent building had been subjected to such terrible treatment."

Now, we are calling out the priests who claim that Islam is a religion of savagery. Here, this is the reality! Against your mere noise which lacks proofs, we respond to you with the facts still extant. The article above was written by a Christian council, including Christian men of religious authority. It is completely true. You, too, look and learn who forced whom to convert to his religion; who allowed the places of worship to be plundered and burned; who perpetrated cruelty on whom? Today, the name of the mosque in Cordoba is "La Mezquita Church" ("The Church Within a Mosque"). The word mezquita comes from the word "masjid." This is to say that the building is still carrying the name "masjid/mosque", and it is visited as one of the great and magnificent works of Islamic civilization, but not as a church.

In the second volume of his Turkish book Alam-i Islam published in Istanbul 1328 [A.D. 1910], Abdurrashid Ibrahim Effendi (37) stated in one of the chapters on the British Enmity Against Islam: (The abolishing of Khilafat as soon as possible is one of the priorities of the British. Paving the way for the Crimean War, their help for Turks here was a trick to demolish the Khilafat. The Treaty of Paris documents this trick. [In the Lausanne Peace Treaty in 1923, they manifested this enmity explicitly.] The disasters facing the Turks have always originated from the British, whatever the mask that was utilized. The essence of the British policy is to demolish Islam. The reason underlying this policy is their fear of Islam. They recruit dishonorable people to deceive Muslims. They publicize them as Islamic scholars and heros. In a nutshell, the British is the greatest enemy of Islam) Byran Williams, an American man of law and politics, is renowned for his books, conferences and his membership in the House of Representatives between 1891 and 1895. He was the Secretary of State between 1913-1915. He died in 1925. In his book "The British Hegemony Over India", he wrote about the British enmity against Islam, their wildness and cruelties, in detail.

Nonetheless, the most barbarous and the most brutal tortures committed by Christians towards Muslims were carried out in India. The Eminent Islamic scholar Fadl-i Hak Hayr-abadi of India says in his book As-savrat-ul Hindia, which means "Indian Revolution," and also in its annotation written by Mawlana Gulam Mihr Ali with the name Al-yevakit-ul-Mihria printed in 1384 (1964): "The British Government got permission first in 1008 (1600) from Akbar Shah to open commercial houses in the city of Calcutta in India. They bought land in Calcutta during the time of Shah-i Alam. In order to protect their land, they brought soldiers from Britain. In 1126 (1714), they were given the right to buy land anywhere they wanted in India because Sultan Farruh Seer Shah had been cured by them. During the time of Sah-i Alam-i Sani, the British entered the city of Delhi and took authority into their own hands. Then, they began to torture the people. Later on, in 1274 (1858), Sultan Bahadir Shah II, who was an Ahl as-Sunnat Hanafi Muslim and a pious man, was labelled a man of bidat (heresy), even a disbeliever by the Wahhabi sect of India. With the help of Wahhabis, disbelievers called "Hindu" and the treacherous vizier Ahsanullah Khan, British soldiers seized the city of Delhi. As soon as they entered the city, they attacked houses and shops, plundered valuables, money and massacred people, including women and children. Nobody had water to drink. The very old Shah and all of his family members, who had been sheltered in the tomb of Humayun Shah, were seized by British soldiers, who fastened their hands and took them towards the fortress on foot. On the way, Patriarch Hudson stopped them and ordered his men to undress the Shah's three sons except for their drawers and shirts. Then, he killed them one by one after shooting them in the chest. He drank their blood. He ordered their bodies to be hung at the gate of the fortress. The following day, their heads were cut off and Patriarch Hudson took them to Henry Barnard, the commander of the British soldiers. Then, he boiled their heads in water to make soup. The soup was given to their parents, the Shah and his wife. They were too hungry to think of what it was made of. They tried to eat it, but they could not. They put it into their mouths, but they never swallowed. They could not understand what sort of meat it was, so they poured it on the ground. The vile Hudson said, "What is the matter? Why did you not eat it? It must be very good. I made it with your sons' meat." Later on, the Sultan and his wife were taken to Rangon city and put into prison. The Sultan died in jail in 1279. In the city of Delhi, three thousand Muslims were shot dead, and twenty seven thousand Muslims were slaughtered. Only the Muslims who escaped during the night survived the massacre. Christians killed countless Muslims living in other towns and villages, too. They pulled down historical buildings, which had great artistic importance. Ships full of jewels, the peerless articles of which the value could not be estimated were taken from India to London." The eminent Islamic scholar Fadl-i Hak died as a martyr while in jail on the Island of Endoman in 1278 (1861).

When the Russian army of occupation arrived in Afghanistan in 1400 (1979), they first martyred the great Islamic scholar and saint (wali) Ibrahim Mujaddidi with his wife, daughters and one hundred and one disciples. Afterwards, they began to kill the Muslims in general. We also charge the British with having perpetrated this savagery and great infamy. After the German armies had defeated the Russians and were about to enter Moscow in 1945, the German President, Hitler, implored the British and American governments on radio: "I admit my failure. I shall surrender to you. But please grant me one last opportunity. Let me go on fighting the Russians. Let me disperse the Russian army. Let me eradicate the danger of communism." Churchill, the Prime Minister of England, rejected this proposal. He continued to support the Russians. The British did not enter the city of Berlin until the Russians arrived. They enabled the Russians to become a nuisance for the world.

It is not my wish to show you all the cruelties committed by Christians, one by one, or to describe them in detail. World history is full of their cruelties. The tortures of the Inquisition carried out for the sake of religion; the tragedy of Saint Bartholomew and other murders similar to them are enough to convince everybody concerning the unbelievable atrocities committed by Christians against other religions. Do you think there was ever a man among the Muslim rulers, who could have so brutally mistreated the Christians? We cannot say, "No!" There were some cruel rulers who appeared among the Muslims as well. But their number was very small, and they were never so insolent as to say, "I have done it for the sake of my religion," as the Christian did. They never encouraged the Muslim world against the Christians. They perpetrated cruelties for their own sake. It is not permissible in Islam to torture any living creatures. All the Muslim men of religious authority did what they could to prevent cruelty. Here is one example:

The books Fazlakai- Tarih-i Osmani and Tarih-i Dawalati Osmani (58) state: After Sumbul Aga had retired from his work in Darusse'ade, he was going to Egypt on a ship. That ship was attacked by pirates from Malta near Rhodes; as a result, he was martyred. Furthermore, Christian soldiers, on Venetian ships, landed on Mora and killed a few thousand Muslims, including women and children. Sultan Ibrahim, the eighteenth emperor, was a very compassionate man. He was terribly sorry to hear of the massacre committed by the Christians. In retaliation for their slaughter, he ordered, through a firman, that some Christians, living in the Ottoman state as guests, be killed in the year 1056 (1646). AbusSaid Effendi (rahime-hullahu ta'ala 'alaih), the Sheikh-ul-Islam of that time, went to the palace together with Bostanci Bashi to see the Sultan. They were given an audience. He was informed that it would be against the religion of Islam to kill people unjustly. Since Sultan Ibrahim (rahime-hullahu ta'ala 'alaih) was a pious man, in line with other Ottoman Sultans, he listened to the advice and reversed his decision." In his book Kamus-ul-alam Shamsaddin Sami Beg (59) (rahime-hullahu ta'ala alaih) says: "Sultan Ibrahim had a stately stature, with a beautiful face and eyes. He was famous for his good character and generosity." Behold! This is the religion of Islam. While the Muslim men of religious authority were preventing Christians from being killed, Christian popes, patriarchs, and priests were encouraging the world to kill the Muslims. Furthermore, they deliberately claim that Islam is a religion of savagery. Hadrat Jesus Christ said: "Turn your left cheek to be slapped by the man who has already done it to your right cheek."

[The British and the Jews demolished the Ottoman Empire by misleading Muslim generations through lies, slanders and by promising money and high-ranking positions to them. They disseminated the fashion of heresy among the youth. They regard women and girls not covering their heads, fornication, alcoholic drinks, immorality and atheism as a progressive attitude. They demolished Islamic scholars and Islamic knowledge. The British spies and masons corrupted the beautiful moral of Islam, and the worships. Islam disappeared, only the name remained. During reign of the party of the Union and Progress, those who were responsible for legislature, begs and pashas, became enemies of Islam as well. They enacted the laws for demolishing Islam. Loyalty for religion and iman became a crime. They hung and butchered countless Muslims. Disseminating the obligations of the religion and abstaining from the harams were regarded as separatism. Those who make Amr-i Maruf, that is those who communicate and write about Islam truly, were called enemies of the regime. Elhamdulillah, the attacks of the Christians ceased to exist now. In our beloved country, the sun of Islam is shining again. The lies and treachery of the enemies were unveiled. The real knowledge of the religion is written freely. Now, every Muslim should be thankful for this freedom and should strive for learning truly our holy religion for which our ancestors sacrificed their lives. If we do not teach our religion to our children, and if we do not make them obey the shariat, then the enemies who are laying in ambush and the ignorant who sell out to them would attack again and would deceive our children. All the European and American nations believe in life after death and the existence of Paradise and Hell. Their churches and synagogues are crowded every week. Religious lessons are compulsory in their schools.

Is not a person, who assumes that the Europeans and the Americans are rational, progressive and civilized, and who takes pride in imitating them by committing lies, alcoholic drinks, gambling, prostitution and fornication a liar? We, Muslims, regard Christians as ignorant, stupid and reactionary, because they believe the attribute of uluhiyyat as far as 'Isa alaihissalam and his mother are concerned, and they regard him as an idol. They worship him. They become polytheists. Although there are those who work in their worldly affairs in line with the shariat of Muhammad Alaihissalam, live in comfort and happiness by obtaining the blessings of Allahu ta'ala, they will burn eternally in Hell since they do not believe in the holy Prophet and his Shariat.

Now, a letter from our Prophet (sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam) is written below to show how a sincere Muslim should act. It was addressed to all the Muslims. Here is the letter (60) in its entirety:

"This article has been written to indicate the word promised to all the Christians by Muhammad (sall-Allahu ta'ala 'alaihi wa sallam), the son of Abdullah. It should be known that Allahu ta'ala heralded me as His mercy, and made me the keeper of His trust upon human beings. I, Muhammad (sall-Allahu ta'ala 'alaihi wa sallam), had this article written to give my promise concerning all non-Muslims. Whoever acts against this promise, either sultan or someone else, will be deemed to have revolted against Allahu ta'ala, and to have mocked his own religion. Such a person is entitled to the curse of Allahu ta'ala. If a Christian priest or a traveler is fasting as an act of worship on a mountain, in a valley, in a desert, on green lands, in low places, or in sand, I, together with my friends, my assistants, and all of my nation, have abrogated all sorts of obligations on them. I show respect towards them and they are under my guardianship. I have exempted them from all taxes that they have to pay in accordance with the treaty we have established with other Christians. Let them be exempt from paying any tribute, or only pay as much as they desire. Do not use force or compulsion on them. Do not dismiss their religious leaders from their posts. Do not force them out of their places of worship. Do not prevent them from traveling. Do not damage any part of their churches or monasteries. Any property taken from their churches should not be used in the masjids. Whoever acts improperly towards these words will be deemed to be against the word of Allahu ta'ala and His Prophet, and will have committed a sin. Do not collect taxes, such as "jizye," and "garamat" from those who are always busy with worshipping and never trade. On sea or land, in the West or the East. I keep their debts. They are under my guardianship. I have given them "eman." (61) Do not collect "tribute" and "ushr" (tithe) from the crops of those living on the mountains who are busy with worshipping. Do not take any part out of their crops for the treasury of the state (the bayt-ul mal). This is because their agriculture is only for feeding themselves, not for trade. If you needed men for holy wars, do not call them. If it is necessary to collect jizya (tax on wealth) from them, do not take more than twelve dirham (gram) a year, no matter how rich they are or how much property they have. They are not to be imposed with any trouble or hardship. If you have to negotiate with them, they should be treated kindly, mercifully and compassionately. Keep them always under your merciful and compassionate wings. Wherever they may be, do not treat harshly those Christian women married with Muslim men. Do not prevent them from going to their churches and worshipping according to their religion. Whoever does not obey this order or acts against it, will be deemed to have revolted against the orders of Allahu ta'ala and His Prophet (alaihi 's-salatu wassalam). They must be helped when repairing their churches. This promise will be valid until the Day of Judgement and will remain unchanged until the end of the world and no one should act against it."

Our Prophet had Hadrat 'Ali Ibni Abi Talib (radi-Allahu ta'ala anh) write this letter in Masjid as-Saadat in Medina, on the third of Muharram, in the second year after the hegira. The following signatures were at the bottom of this letter:

Muhammad Ibn Abdullah, Rasulullah (sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam).

Abu Bakr Ibn Abi Kuhafe

'Umar Ibn Hattab

'Uthman Ibn Affan

'Ali Ibn Abi Talib

Abu Huraira

'Abdullah Ibn Masud

El-Abbas Ibn Abdulmuttalib

Fadl Ibn Abbas

Zubair Ibn Avvam

Talha Ibn Abdullah

Sad Ibn Muaz

Sad Ibn Ubade

Sabit Ibn Kays

Zaid Ibn Sabit

Haris Ibn Sabit

Abdullah Ibn 'Umar

Ammar Ibn Yasir

(radi-Allahu ta'ala anhum ajmain)

As you see, our great Prophet (sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam) orders us to treat people in other religions mercifully and compassionately.

Now, let's read the translation of the "eman" given to the inhabitants of the city of Ilya by Hadrat 'Umar (radi-Allahu 'anh), who is alleged to have destroyed four thousand (4000) churches. Christians call the Prophet Alyasa' [Ilyas 'alaihi 's-salam) "Ilya." They also call the city of Jerusalem "Ilya."

"This letter is a letter of 'eman' given to the inhabitants of Ilya by Abdullah 'Umar (radi-Allahu ta'ala 'anh), the Amir (Khalif) of the Muslims. This letter has been written in regards to their properties, lives, churches, children, the sick, the healthy, as well as for other nations. It must be known that:

The Muslims will not enter their churches, burn or damage their churches, pull down any parts of their churches, collect even one grain from their properties, force them to become Muslim, or to change the way of their worshipping or their religion. They will not be subjected to even the least ill-treatment by Muslims. In case they leave the country of their own will, they will be given 'eman' (a guarantee) for their lives, properties, and chastity until they arrive at their destination. If they stay here they will surely be under our guarantee. But, they will pay the "jizya" the same as the inhabitants of Ilya. If some of the natives of Jerusalem or the Greeks want to leave with their families, and empty their churches or other places of worship, they will be given a guarantee for their lives, churches, expenses, and properties until they arrive at their destination. No taxes will be collected from those who are not natives until the time of harvest, whether they leave here or not. The orders of Allahu ta'ala and His Prophet (sall-Allahu ta'ala 'alaihi wa sallam) and the promises given by all the Islamic Khalifs (caliphs) and Muslims are the same with the facts written in this letter."

Signatures:

'Umar-ul Faruq

Eye-witnesses:

Halid Ibn Velid

Amr Ibnil'as

Abdurrahman Ibn Awf

Muaviya Ibn Abi Sufyan"

'Umar (radi-Allahu 'anh) honored Jerusalem by visiting it. Christian authorities handed over the keys of the city of Jerusalem to 'Umar (radi-Allahu 'anh), and accepted paying the jizya. Thus, they were happy to get rid of the heavy taxes, torture, trouble, oppression and cruelties of the Byzantine Empire, their own state. soon, they saw the justice and the mercy of Muslims, whom they believed to be barbarians. They understood that Islam was a religion which orders good actions and mercy, and a way which leads human beings to happiness either in this world or the hereafter. Without any oppression or intimidation by Muslims, they were converted to Islam in groups, in wards and in quarters of a town.

If you examine these two proofs, you will see that true Muslims and true religious guides have tolerated the followers of all other religions to a great degree. They never used force to convert anyone to Islam nor did they damage their places of worship; on the contrary, they helped them, and even repaired their churches. Among the Muslims, were not there any men who behaved unkindly towards the Christians? Yes, there were, but they were very few in number. Furthermore, they were the ignorant who did not know the orders of Islam. They followed their own selfish desires, and they were punished by Muslims, themselves. No Muslim, if he were clever and knew the orders of Islam very well, followed them. Those who only carried the name "Muslim" tyrannized, not only the Christians, but the Muslims as well. No relation is there between their behavior and the religion of Islam. The holy meaning of the 168 th verse of Chapter Nisa in the Qur'an al-karim is: "I will never forgive the atheists and the cruel ones." If the commentaries of the Qur'an al-karim are examined, it will be seen that Allahu ta'ala orders us to treat each other mercifully, compassionately, to forgive those who behave maliciously towards us, to continuously maintain a smiling face and a sweet tongue, to act patiently, and to conduct business affairs in an agreeable and friendly way. All the historians in the world admit that our Prophet (sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam) always suggested "peace" and that he was even kind to those who acted against him. I want to write a few examples demonstrating how the Christians who first came to an Islamic country were afraid of Muslims; how Christian men of religious authority portrayed Islam as a religion of savagery to the young generation, and thereby closed their eyes to the facts written above; how those poor Christians were amazed after they had seen the truth. The articles below have been taken from the books written by Christians on this matter. In her book Letters from Constantinople, published in 1315 [1897], Mrs. Georgina Max Muller, who lived in Istanbul, wrote:

"During the school years, we were taught that the Muslims were wild and that the Turks were completely barbaric. That is why I cannot explain how I was saddened and frightened to hear that my son, who was an official of the Foreign Office, was appointed to Istanbul. On the other hand, the days I spent in Istanbul were the best days of my life. When my son was in Istanbul, I decided to visit him together with my husband, Prof. Muller. My husband was world famous for his studies in history. He was not afraid of the Turks as much as I, and wanted to study some historical places in Turkey. I was anxiously getting ready for the journey. I wondered how those barbaric Muslims would treat us! At last, we arrived in Istanbul. We were immediately influenced by the beautiful and charming view of Istanbul. But what amazed us most were the Muslims we met there. They were absolutely refined, noble and civilized. We never had the thought of fear or danger in our minds when we were touring the crowded streets of Istanbul, or visiting a mosque or examining some Byzantine ruins and remains in some remote places. Everybody we met in Istanbul treated us very friendly. They always helped us. They were not negatively influenced by the fact that we were the followers of another religion. They were respectful towards other religions as much as their own. Wherever I met them, I became angry with those who led us astray and miseducated us. Contrary to the things we were taught, they never hated Hadrat Jesus, actually they accepted him as a prophet. They did not interfere with our religious ceremonies; they did not mock our religion. They respected us as human beings. Despite the fact that we see Muslims as atheists following Satan, they never used one bad word against our religion.

"The expression we were taught: "Islam and civilization are the opposite of each other," might have originated from the fact that a very small stone of truth was exaggerated. This stone of truth is the fact that the Muslims did not adopt some bad Western traditions, those contrary to Islamic customs, which we consider acts of civilization, and instead strictly followed their own traditions. But, if we think deeply, these are unimportant things and there can be no real relation between them and true civilization.

"Turks are the loyal followers of their traditions and the high moral principles of Islam. These traditions are esteemed by the Muslims in their daily lives. In my opinion, the Turks are the best Muslims. When I compared them with the Muslims from Iran and Saudi Arabia, I see that the Turks are the most refined. It is a pleasure to watch them sincerely performing their religious tasks, and you feel great attraction towards them. You feel love and respect towards them. You can see men, soldiers, porters, even beggars, in the streets, in the gardens, in the bazars, in the shops, performing their salat or pray to God by extending their hands skyward. But none of this is done for show. The Muslim with pure faith returns back to his work after he completes this religious task, which takes only a short time. A Muslim adapts himself strictly to the moral principles of Islam written in the Qur'an al-karim. But it must not be forgotten that these good moral principles have been going on for thirteen and a half centuries without being corrupted. Today, most of these facts are not known in the principal cities of Europe. At the moment, characterizing the Muslims as the enemies of civilization comes from the fact that the Europeans do not know the great moral principles of Islam introduced by Hadrat Muhammad[sall-Allahu ta'ala 'alaihi wasallam]. Unfortunately, they have not heard the words of that great Prophet [sall-Allahu ta'ala 'alaihi wa-sallam]: I'm only a man nothing else. When I give you an order from Allahu ta'ala, you must accept it immediately. But, if I say something from myself about worldly affairs, it is not the order of Allahu ta'ala. I say it as a man.' The knowledge of science has developed tremendously since the time of Hadrat Muhammad (sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam). The religion of Islam orders the affairs of men to be adjusted in accordance with ever-changing conditions. If former things are done in accordance with today's conditions, they will bring no harm upon the religion of Islam; contrarily, it will more clearly bring out the fact that Islam is a religion of civilization.

"The Turks have been very kind to the followers of other religions. There are a lot of Christian officials charged with technological affairs in Turkey. Then, why do we not separate scientific and religious knowledge from each other? We must not forget, that in the West, scientific and religious affairs were separated later on. Christian priests were hardly prevented from using religion as a means to achieve political ambitions. The Christian world could not easily see how harmful it was to use religion as a means for worldly benefits. Surely, nobody has the right to change the orders of Allahu ta'ala. The fundamentals of worship, justice and morals must carry on as they were revealed by the Prophets. For example, the Church of Scotland declared that playing the organ in churches was a sin, and declared: "Those who accept the organ in their churches will go to hell." This measure taken by that church shows that it is not good to mix scientific instruments of pleasure used in worldly affairs with religious affairs. During the Ottoman State, ignorant individuals rejected scientific and traditional innovations by claiming that they were 'satanic.' But it was a slander against Islam. This also happened the same way in the West. However, in time, the Muslims will overcome the efforts of ignorant fanatics.

"The Turks are labeled 'cruel and barbaric' by Europeans. But the source of such characterizations goes way back to the Middle Ages. We must frankly admit: Did not Europeans commit atrocities in the Middle Ages? In my opinion, we were very cruel in those days. Our history is full of cruelties and torture. Nonetheless, the Muslims are ordered, even during war, to be kind towards the prisoners of war, not to harm religious men, old women, and children by the Qur'an al-karim. Some Muslim commanders in history did not follow the commandments of the Qur'an al-karim because they had been guided by ignorant men of religion, who did not thoroughly study the Qur'an al-karim. Some ignorant religious men thought that it was permissible in Islam to kill the followers of other religions; consequently, they enjoined the Muslims to do just that. Those unfortunate men fulfilled those orders thinking that what they did was compatible with Islam, in spite of the fact that it was against the Qur'an al-karim. Fortunately, the number of such misguided commanders is few. It will be a good deed to translate the Qur'an al-karim into every language. But, I think more time is needed to accomplish this. This is because, in all the Muslim countries, it is considered a sin to use any foreign languages in religious affairs, except the Arabic language. A few years ago, a Muslim in the city of Madras in India was cursed because of reading a few verses of the Qur'an al-karim in the Hindustani language, instead of Arabic. [This happened because that man had read it as the Qur'an al-karim itself, and not as an interpretation.] The Qur'an al-karim is a very civilized and logical religious book. Some Muslims do not know the Qur'an al-karim completely. That is why they become toys in the hands of fanatical preachers and believe their dogmatic nonsense. But their scholars examined the Qur'an al-karim closely to understand the reality of the religion, and, as a result, they criticize dogmatic preachers in some countries for being out of conformity with Islam. I clearly declare that Christianity and Islam are so similar to each other, in regards to their fundamentals, that there are no other two religions so much alike. These two religions are brothers with one another, just like the two children of the same man. They have the same spirit." [Madam Max Muller seems to have been deeply influenced by the propaganda taught during her school years. As a matter of fact, the reality is completely contrary to her thoughts. The Qur'an al-karimas already been translated into many other languages and its interpretations have been given. However, it is wrong to deem these translations and interpretations as the Qur'an al-karim, and to recite them while worshipping or while performing namaz.].

The above letter focuses light on a lot of truth. Islam has never prevented the Muslims from interpreting or explaining the Qur'an al-karim by way of a foreign language. But, whether treacherously, or by mistake, not only in other languages, but even in Arabic, translating the Qur'an al-karim with a wrong meaning is forbidden. Our Prophet ( sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam) declared: "The man who translates the Qur'an al-karim according to his own understanding becomes a disbeliever." If everybody gives a different meaning, according to his own understanding, the meaning of the Qur'an al-karim will become corrupt. If everybody explains something differently, it will become a religion like Christianity, corrupt and complex. The meaning of the Qur'an al-karim was explained by our Prophet (sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam) to his Companions from the beginning to the end. He told them what Allahu ta'ala meant by the verses in it. And the Sahabas (companions) reported them to their students. Then their students wrote them in books. Therefore, thousands of books were written presenting commentaries on the Qur'an al-karim. Many interpretation books, either in Persian or Turkish, and thousands of religious books have been published. One of the tafsir (interpretation) books written in Persian is entitled Mawahib-i aliyya. This tafsir book was written by Husain Va'iz Kashifi (62) (rahime-hullahu ta'ala) in the city of Hirat, hundreds of years ago, before this Christian, Madam Muller, had been born. The Ottoman sultans and Islamic scholars had declared this tafsir book to be very precious, and, so, it was translated into Turkish with the name Mawakib. The man cursed in a mosque in the city of Matras, India, was an atheist who intended to corrupt the religion of Islam. He was cursed because he interpreted the Qur'an al-karim with wrong and corrupt meanings. The men who cursed him were great Islamic scholars who had written books in the Hindustani and Persian languages.

Now, let us learn what another non-Muslim woman thinks about this matter. The paragraphs below were quoted from the book Twenty Six Years on the Bosphorous written by Mrs. Dorino L. Neave, a Briton, who lived in Istanbul between the years 1881-1907 (1325).

Mrs. Neave, too, mentions the nobleness of Muslims and the kindness they showed her. Then, she, herself, complains about some points. Now, we shall read what she has written:

"There is a religious ceremony among the Muslims here called the ceremony of Muharram. In spite of the fact that I have lived a very long time in Istanbul, I never did see that ceremony. As it was told to me by eyewitnesses, that particular Muslim ceremony is quite terrible and barbarous. Men come to the ceremony half-naked, crying out 'O! Hasan! O! Husain! while severely beating themselves with chains. Afterwards, they are seen in blood and sweat." Then, Mrs. Neave tells about a ceremony of Riphai (63) attended by her friends. 'As I was told by my friends, the darwishes [that is, the Riphai] crying out were half-naked in a queue. Meanwhile they twisted themselves towards the front and back and repeated the holy word 'La ilaha...' (that is, kalima-i shahadat) slowly, but in a high voice. Then, they hopped and jumped more and more rapidly while crying out and screaming frightfully, as if they were in ecstasy or in a fit of epilepsy, until they lost themselves. Then, they pushed the knives in their hands into their bodies. There were some people among them who fell in their own blood. At the same time, some small sick children were placed under their feet by their own mothers who believed that their children would be cured by these men who were deemed to be sacred and holy just at those moments. Turkish women believed that if those Ripha'i darwishes stepped on their children during those moments, they would recover from all kinds of illnesses. I am absolutely certain that the only cure performed by those crazy men stepping on the children was that the children died and thereby recovered from all kinds of illnesses. I wonder how they could believe in such things. It was said that the crying sounded like that of satans while the smell of garlic breath in those takkas (darwish cloister) of the Riphai caused nausea within the people there. My friends added that they reminded them of the backwardness of the Middle Ages. We have not seen another ceremony so primitive. We felt sick in front of that horrible sight."

Now, let us examine these two extracts some more. Mrs. Georgina Muller is right about what she has written. She studied the religion of Islam quite well. But, Mrs. Neave is completely wrong. It is because she had decided that the religion of Islam is barbaric and primitive, believing that those ceremonies are from the fundamentals of our religion. But there is no relationship between Islam and the ceremony of Muharram and the ceremony of the Riphai, which were invented by ignoramuses. Even though she lived in a Muslim country for a very long time, she has made one great error: She has insulted the religion of Islam, just like other Europeans, without researching whether what she was told is based on facts; without seeing the science and religious books being studied in hundreds of Muslim schools; without being aware that thousands of Muslims perform prayers with great regularity in mosques, piously and humbly, after performing an ablution so as to be clean spiritually and physically. The reason for this is the extreme fanaticism in Christianity and their hostility towards Muslims.

The suggestion by Mrs. Muller about translating the Qur'an al-karim and not using the religion for worldly benefits was always realized by true Islamic scholars and the governments following them. The invented ceremonies of the seventy-two different corrupted sects, who were prophesied by our Prophet (sall-Allahu 'alaihi wasallam), and the separatists in Islam have been kept away from the religion of Islam with the help of the books written by Islamic scholars (rahime-humullahu ta'ala) called Ahl as-Sunnat. These great Islamic scholars declared all over the world that there was no relation between the religion of Islam and the ceremonies of the Riphai or the other so-called ceremony of Muharram. Such ceremonies were banned by Islamic states. These facts are reported in Fatawa-yi hadisiyya and at the end of the 266 th letter of Maktubat, in Hadika and in Bariqa. A formal declaration stating that those ceremonies were prohibited in Islam was given. Islam does not permit dancing, playing musical instruments, practicing magic or performing jugglery. In his book called Al-munira, Ahmad Ibn Kamal Effendi (64) (rahime hullahu ta'ala), who was a great scholar and one of the Ottoman Shaikh-ul Islams, wrote: "The first thing necessary for either shaikhs or disciples is to adapt themselves to the Sharia. Sharia means the orders and prohibitions of Allahu ta'ala. Our Prophet (sall-Allahu 'Alaihi wa sallam) said: 'If the man whose words or actions are not compatible with the Shariat is seen flying in the air, walking on the sea or swallowing fire put into his mouth, and claimed all these things to be karamats (miracles), you must see him as a magician, liar, or deviant trying to cause people to go astray.' The true Islamic religion codified by Ahl as-Sunnat scholars (rahima humullahu ta'ala) has nothing to do with legends (hurapha) and is very logical. The only divine book of Islam is the Qur'an al-karim. The Qur'an al-karim orders us to worship only Allahu ta'ala. How to worship was determined by Him. The forms are the kindest, the noblest, the healthiest, and the most suitable forms for Allahu ta'ala and the worshippers. According to the Qur'an al-karim, all Muslims are equal in the view of Allahu ta'ala. One's superiority to another Muslim is possible only by having more knowledge and taqwa. Taqwa means possessing the fear of Allahu ta'ala. In the thirteenth verse of Chapter Hujurat in the Qur'an al-karim, Allahu ta'ala declares: "The noblest of you in Allahu ta'ala's sight is he who fears Him the most." The Qur'an al-karim wants all the Muslims to be the same. Differences in their faith is severely prohibited. According to the Qur'an al-karim, no force can be used to convert people into Muslims. On the contrary, this has been prohibited. Jihad (holy war) is not done to make people Muslim, but only to make the faith and the religion available to them. The Qur'an al-karim orders us to be kind and merciful towards everyone. There is no relation between the religion of Islam and the man who is not respectful of these orders."

There are still some true passages in today's Holy Bible in regards to the orders of Allahu ta'ala. These passages order us to be kind and merciful towards people just as the Qur'an al-karim. Those parts in the Torah and Bible which are agreeable with Islam are accepted as the words of Allahu ta'ala by Islamic scholars. As a matter of fact, Christianity was a religion of "monotheism." Wrong interpretations and Jewish activities to destroy Christianity brought about the idea of the "Trinity." Jesus (alaihi's-salam) said, "Let your left cheek be slapped by the man who has already done it to your right cheek," and prayed for those who had troubled and tortured you, by saying, "Oh! My God, forgive their sins! They do not know what they did." Then while both religions order us to be kind and merciful and are based on the fundamentals of patience and a good mental outlook, why have their respective members hated each other for centuries and behaved cruelly towards each other? These cruelties and torture were committed by Christians, only. The truth of this fact is admitted by them, too. The historical events which you have already read above were quoted from the books written by Christian historians and priests. If we had taken them from the books of Islamic scholars, maybe it would have caused suspicion. How long did the atrocities that the Muslims were subjected to last? Let us try to find out by way of the information written in Western sources reporting on how long the Inquisition lasted. According to European sources, the Inquisition lasted six centuries, from the year 578 (1183) to 1222 (1807). In those horrible tribunals in Italy, Spain and France, innumerable people were subjected to capital punishment simply because of their faith or new ideas. Some people were burned alive or tortured in different ways.

All the Muslims and Jews in Spain were harassed until they were completely annihilated. Ferdinand the Fifth, (65) the King of Spain, even put his own son to death in those tribunals, and he was even proud enough to say: "No Muslims or atheists are left in Spain." Those tribunals referred to as the Inquisition annihilated not only the followers of other religions, but also all the educated classes. All scientific inventions or renovations were deemed to be sins.

Since he said that the world was round after learning it from the Muslims, even Galileo was sent to a tribunal, but he managed to avoid death by taking his word back formally. Those tribunals were under the control of priests; all the proceedings there were secret and their courts were closed to the public. The Inquisition is a stain on human history and a scar on the face of Christianity. Napoleon Bonaparte abolished the Inquisitions in Spain with great difficulty in 1222 (1807), but it reappeared after Napoleon. Then, in 1250 (1834) these inquisitions completely disappeared. It is unknown how many people were sentenced to death by those tribunals, called inquisitions, but it is considered to be in the millions. One small tribunal in Spain sentenced 28,000 people to death. This number must give us an idea as to the total number. The accounts of the atrocities and killings totally committed by Christians towards Muslims and Jews, by Catholics towards Protestants, by Protestants toward Catholics, in the name of "religion," are recorded in the book Dhiyaul-Qulub, written by Ishaq Effendi of Harput (rahima hullahu ta'ala). According to these accounts, the number of people killed during the Crusades; in the war of "killing the non-Christians," which occurred in the era of Emperor Theophil and his wife Theodora; in the mass killings which were fulfilled upon the orders of Pope Gregorius the seventh; in the mass killings which were executed to make people Christian by force in the fourteenth century; during the annihilation of Muslims and Jews living in the state of Andalusia; in the murders to eradicate the Protestants, which were carried out by Catholics on the night of Saint Bartholomew; then in Ireland during the killing of the Catholics with the order of Queen Elizabeth of England; and in other genocidal acts is at least twenty-five million. These facts are written by Christian historian in their works.

This number will be higher than that if we add up the killings committed by the Russians, especially in Middle Asia in 1321 (1903) and in Afghanistan in 1406 (1986).

These are the results which were derived mostly from Christian books:

1- Islam has never been a religion of barbarism. Muslims have never attacked Christians just to annihilate them; on the contrary, in cases of necessity, they were protected by Muslims.

2- In return for this, Christian priests instigated all their followers in an effort to eradicate all the Muslims and Jews, and even their own co-religionists who were members of different sects. The Christians committed every kind of brutality; as a result, they converted Christianity into a religion of savagery.

The holy books of both religions do not order genocide. That is to say, the leaders directing these acts of violence, mercilessly killed innocent people for their selfish benefits or thinking their acts were useful for their country or for plundering or with the intention of a grudge and revenge, were completely wrong. In short, they committed these crimes for something which is not related to religion.

Religion is the "WAY TO Allah", which requires everybody to have a pure morality. It orders us to be merciful, friendly, and to obey the words of the older ones. It counsels compassion for the young, leads everybody to the right way, and it is deemed to be a deadly sin to use it for self-aggrandizement. Using religion for the sake of politics, or other evil purposes, and instigating some ignorant ones to do something evil in the name of religion is a mortal sin so ugly that it is the most cursed by Allahu ta'ala, who is All-forgiving and All-merciful. How can they be accepted as religious men -a pope or a cardinal- who gather people for the purpose of killing Muslims, which means revolting against the orders of their own religion? What relation can there be between Islam and those fanatics who instigate people against their own sultans or their officials by crying out, "Religion is being disregarded?" Fortunately, today, there are no ignorant idiots left to follow behind religious or scientific fanatics. Today's Christian and Muslim youngsters learn foreign languages, meet each other and become friends. They easily visit one another's country with the help of modern transportation. Now, Christians, too, can see that Islam is not a religion of savagery, and they can notice that both religions order the same principles.

Today, a lot of Christians express the fact that they are very sorry about the cruelties committed by Christians in the past. They say they do not agree with them after all; on the contrary, they accept Islam as the most civilized religion, and they know true Muslims as perfect, civilized, friendly and good-natured people. They even respond with the necessary answers for those who oppose their opinion. We hope that from now on, everybody will accept religion as "RELIGION" only, and that they will not attempt to use it insolently as a means for self-aggrandizement or for other evil purposes. We hope they will strive with us hand in hand against the communists who are the enemies of all religions. We shall both struggle for the same purpose of setting those human beings, moaning under communist torture, free in order to let them have human rights.

FOOTNOTES

(50) See the section "Qur'an al-karim and Bibles of Today"

(51) The Crusades lasted 174 years from 489 (1096 A.D.) to 669 (1270 A.D.).

(52) Salahaddin Ayyubi, passed away in 589 (1193 A.D.)

(53) Abdurrahman bin Muawiah bin Hisham bin Abdulmalik, passed away in 172 (788 A.D.).

(54) Alhakem II, passed away in 366 (976 A.D.).

(55) Shadirvan: Small pools under a shelter in the courtyard of a mosque used for ablutions (ritual washings).

(56) Ahmad al-MaqQari. A famous historian, died in Egypt in 1041 (1632).

(57) Carlos the Fifth: Charles Quint. Born 906 (1500 A.D.) and died 966 (1558 A.D.) the emperor of Spain and Germany.

(58) See the eighth edition of the book Fazlaka-i Tarih-i 'Osmani and the third edition 1325 (1907) of the book Tarih-i Devlet-i Osmaniyye written by Abdurrahman Seref Beg, who was the headmaster of a school named Mekteb-i Sultani (rahime-hullahu ta'ala 'alaih).

(59) Shamsaddin Sami passed away in Istanbul in 1322 (1904 A.D.).

(60) The original letter is in the thirtieth page of the first volume of the book Mejmua-i Munshea-Tus-Satatin, written by Feridun Bey.

(61) eman: a guarantee.

(62) Husain Wa'iz passed away in Hirat in 910 (1505 A.D.).

(63) Sayyid Ahmad Riphai passed away in 578 (1183 A.D.).

(64) Shamsaddin Ahmad bin Sulaiman bin Kamal Pasha passed away in 940 (1534 A.D.).

(65) Ferdinand the fifth died in 922 (1516 A.D.).