Our only direct encounters with Islam were the minarets and mosques throughout the cities, and the individuals we met along the way who may have been muslims. My outsiders perspective of Islam was shaped a little bit, though probably not too much. I saw a conqueror's mentality with the building of minarets right next to churches and synagogues, and the building of the Al Aqsa mosque on the temple rock, with the Dome of the Rock being built the same as the dome on the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, except out of gold. That being said, I saw, and was reminded, throughout the trip that there is a more peaceful side of Islam, which is a fact that needs to be emphasized when the general American experience with Islam is the extremist terrorist. When the Muslims conquered North Africa and the Middle East, they did not kill off the people of other faiths like the Crusaders. Instead, they allowed them to worship, BUT they forbid proselytizing. That meant that the other religions died out after a generation. This type of policy can be oppressive in a country like Iran when Christians share the gospel, but in modern day Israel this is not currently an issue.
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| Mahmoudiya Mosque, Jaffa |
After we left there were missile attacks from Gaza and a bombing in Jerusalem. The extremist group Islamic Jihad from Gaza claimed the credit for the bombing. People of Islam need the gospel of Jesus Christ, but I am sad that many peaceful people have their faith represented in this way, and the repercussion is that many peaceful Muslims are distrusted by others, and anti-theists have a target to point at and to say that "God is not good, and people should not have faith in Him."
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