Islamispeace.org.uk...

Oh dear; it's ANOTHER "Islam is peaceful, really" website. This is also a campaign which is being spread on London buses.

Check out the page about "Misconceptions" about Islam. Almost everything there is wrong.

Misconception 1: Jihad means holy war

The site says jihad is really a "struggle against evil inclinations within oneself." In fact, most, if not all, of the Qur'an's mentions of jihad are militant in context. Muhammad spoke in graphic language - talk of beheading and cutting off fingers and toes - and exempted the elderly and disabled from jihad. This would make no sense if he were referring to a peaceful inner struggle. The most reliable hadith, Bukhari, contains over 200 uses of the word "jihad", and not a single one of them makes any reference to a peaceful "war against the self".

Misconception 3: Islam was spread by the sword

The site says this is a myth. Apparently it is historically inaccurate that the Muslims swept out of Arabia and took Damascus in 635, Basrah in Iraq in 636, Antioch in 637, and Jerusalem in 638. They went on to sweep west across North Africa, into Spain, and finally into France, and within 400 years had captured over half of Christendom. I laughed when, right after saying that Islam did not spread by the sword, I read: "Muslims ruled Spain for roughly 800 years." Now then...HOW did Arabian Muslims come to rule Spain?

Misconception 5: Islam oppresses women

The site gives a load of false guff here. It doesn't mention that the Qur'an says women are inferior to men and must be ruled by them (4:34), that a woman's testimony is worth half that of a man's (2:282), that it allows polygamy (4:3), and that it tells husbands to beat their disobedient wives (4:34). Muhammad also called for women to be veiled, and as a result of his own example Islamic law says that if a woman is raped, she must produce four witnesses to testify for her or else she will be punished for adultery.

Misconception 6: Muslims do not believe in Jesus

The site makes clear that Muslims DO believe Jesus is a Prophet. But they don't mention that they believe he was a MUSLIM Prophet and that Christianity is a false religion which has twisted the true teachings of Jesus (e.g. 2:87-90). The Qur'an also denies that Jesus was ever crucified (4:157).

Misconception 7: Terrorism is supported in Islam

The site quotes Qur'an 5:32 to claim that taking of innocent life is forbidden in Islam: "Whoever kills an innocent soul it is as if he killed the whole of Mankind. And whoever saves one, it is as if he saved the whole of Mankind". However, they don't mention that this verse isn't addressed to the Muslims at all, but to the Children of Israel, and is in the past tense. It comes as part of a warning to the Jews not to make war on the Muslims or they will face terrible punishment.

Misconception 8: Islam is intolerant of other religions

The site quotes Qur'an 2:62, which seems to promise a place in Paradise to Jews, Christians and Sabians, as evidence of Islam's divine pluralism. However, Muslim commentators have not rendered this as such. In fact, many take this passage to mean that Jews, Christians and Sabians can only be saved if they convert to Islam. They also do not mention that while Jews and Christians are "honoured" as the People of Book, because they received legitimate revelations from Allah, Islam denies them equality of rights with Muslims by making them dhimmis.

Also check out the website's "5 Point Plan" for making things better:

1. Fight Islamophobia
2. Create dialogue
3. Address grievances
4. Be creative
5. Create Friendships

Note that there's nothing in there about what they plan to do to prevent Muslims from becoming jihadists. No mention of teaching peaceful coexistence to Muslims, no setting up of nationwide and global initiatives to teach against the jihad ideology in mosques. Nope, it's all about what WE can do to stop being so "Islamophobic".

All in all, genuine Islamic moderation flies out of the window like a filthy swine yet again.