How do moderate Christians (or Muslims) feel about the extremists or fundies in their society?

Question

1) Do they silently support them

2) Do they feel ashamed, but rather keep quiet

3) Do they publicly oppose them

I just sometimes wonder if there is really a difference between moderates and fundies in religion. I know it is wrong to stereotype, but you seldom see moderates openly condemning the actions of fundies within their religion.

If you have some examples of this, please put it hear. And yes, I would love to hear the opinions of moderates!

Answer 1

I think you're going to run into a problem with identifying fundamentalist Christians.  In the strict sense of the word it means those who believe certain fundamentals, such as the inerrancy of the Bible, the virgin birth, the bodily resurrection of Jesus and a second coming.  Darby's rapture theology is not technically part of fundamentalism but most fundamentalists seem to believe it.

Maybe what you're going for is the political part of fundamentalism, that is, the belief that the US is a Christian nation and should be governed only by fundamentalist Christians using the Bible as the source of law.  The dominionists and reconstructionists are the really scary extreme wing of political fundamentalists and I really hope that moderate Christians would work to make sure they don't gain any more power than they already have.

Answer 2

in a country where we all have freedom of speech.....this is what happens.

Answer 3

a fundamentalist christian is a christian who lives by these following laws: It is more blessed to give than to receive, love your neighbors as yourself, do onto others as you would like them to do onto you.

do you see anything wrong there ?

here are the scriptures :

acts 20:35 "I have shewed you all things, how that so labouring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive."

Luke 6:31 "And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise"

Romans 13:9-10"...Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

10 Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law."

You probrably have a different definition for fundamentalists than I have, that's all.

Answer 4

They are all 1's.

Those who say they are not are liars.

Answer 5

1) No.  I wouldn't say so.

2) Really just indifference.

3) Probably just as much as the fundies would moderates.

I certainly believe there are fundamentalist groups with any ideology (whether it's religion, politics, civics, etc.).

Religious ones are the worse because they're more willing to die for their beliefs.

But every Muslim I know tells me that the Quran forbids suicide, yet we see what happens in the Middle East all the time with the suicide bombers being told that their rewards (virgins for their pleasure) are in heaven.

Then again, Christians are not innocent either.  

We've had fundamentalist groups like the Knights Templar who would engage in massacres for the "will of God".

Or how about the KKK?  Hanging Blacks from trees and lynching them before civil rights?!  That too was claimed by them as acting in God's will.

Not to mention the killings over the years in Europe from Catholic vs. Protestant wars.

I'd say the more you stray from the doctrine, the more of a fundamentalist you are perceived.

Answer 6

Fundies and fanatics are ignorant brutes who worship their own ravenous appetite for power and control and do not respect the values of caring for life.

Moderate people are afraid of them and the danger they cause so moderates cannot speak out freely, cannot do anything to stop fundies and fanatics out of fear of harm.

Answer 7

As a muslim I do not consider them as extremist whom you consider extremist.

Extremism is a relative term. When you percieve someone as extremist, it is with reference to you thoughts. And it is likely that you might be at one  extreme.

Answer 8

Primo, there are very few, if at all any, "Christian fundies".

Regarding Muslims, I cannot answer since I'm not one.

Secundo, you might have noticed that Christians have very vociferously condemned and brought to book any errant "Christians". I don't think I need to comment upon the conspicuous lack of any such opposition to the Islamic Terrorists by the Muslims.

Terrio, people generally make the mistake of calling things like the KKK and the n***s "Christians" when they are Occultists and Satanists. Kindly make the effort to remember that the Burning Cross and the caped hoods of the KKK are a Satanist tradition as is the Swastika of the n***s. Of course, there is no chance of mistaking the belonging of the Islamic Terrorist Groups and all "moderate Muslims' are immediately condemned as Kaffirs.

Go figure.

ST

PS,

It might be interesting to note that Happily Happy, in an Answer some time before, had praised the Islamic Terrorists as "Heroes and Martyrs of Islam"

It might also interest some less learned people to understand that the War for Ireland was Political and not Religious. No "Catholic vs Protestant Wars" were ever fought; though Wars over lands and wealth were.

However, the very beginning of Islam and the spread of Islam was by Jihad or Holy War, which, had it not been for the Christian Response in the Crusades, that came after over 4 centuries of provocations, which finally stopped this.

Answer 9

When I was a Christian, I started at number 2... then moved on to number 3... then I stopped calling myself a Christian all together.

Edit: Gotta be honest... when I was little, I was number 1. Only because I hadn't learned to think for myself. Sad, I know.

Answer 10

Those extremists should be opposed. They're the ones who's corrupting our world.

I'm a Christian

Answer 11

The Devil brings errors in pairs so that if a man is offended by one extreme he may the more easily be driven to the other. I don't support or oppose anyone. I tell them what God says in his Holy Word and pray for the Spirit to take the Word and bring God's will to pass.

Isaiah 55:6  Seek the LORD while He may be found, Call upon Him while He is near.  7  Let the wicked forsake his way, And the unrighteous man his thoughts; Let him return to the LORD, And He will have mercy on him; And to our God, For He will abundantly pardon.  

8  "For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways," says the LORD.  9  "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.  

10  "For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven, And do not return there, But water the earth, And make it bring forth and bud, That it may give seed to the sower And bread to the eater,  11  So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.

Romans 10:17  So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

Answer 12

Ask the  Christians in Mindanao, Philippines.

The Muslim MILF negotiated a territorial agreement with certain government officials.

It wasn't enough for a number of the Muslim MILF who then destroyed a number of cities in Northeastern Mindanao murdering many Christians.

The MILF who negotiated the agreement indicated these were rebel member of their group but would provide no help to the Philippine government in controlling or capturing these "Muslim extremists."

Answer 13

Well they  don't seem to act on number three but number two sits comfortably with their profile instead of standing up and being counted with number one.

Answer 14

I've taken some fundies to task here for attacking atheists.

However, you folks tell us all the time not to judge anyone, so......I'm not going to do that.

Answer 15

If a non-Muslim believes that Islam is a merciless religion with something to do with terrorism; a religion which does not give rights to women; a religion which contradicts science; in his limited sense that non-Muslim is correct to reject such Islam. The problem is he has a wrong picture of Islam. Even I reject such a false picture of Islam, but at the same time, it becomes my duty as a Muslim to present the correct picture of Islam to that non-Muslim i.e. Islam is a merciful religion, it gives equal rights to the women, it is not incompatible with logic, reason and science; if I present the correct facts about Islam, that non-Muslim may Inshallah accept Islam.

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1.   Media maligns Islam

   1. Islam is without doubt the best religion but the media is in the hands of the westerners who are afraid of Islam. The media is continuously broadcasting and printing information against Islam. They either provide misinformation about Islam, misquote Islam or project a point out of proportion, if any.

   2. When any bomb blasts take place anywhere, the first people to be accused without proof are invariably the Muslims. This appears as headlines in the news. Later, when they find that non-Muslims were responsible, it appears as an insignificant news’ item.

   3. If a 50 year old Muslim marries a 15 year old girl after taking her permission, it appears on the front page but when a 50 year old non-Muslim rapes a 6 year old girl, it may appear in the news in the inside pages as ‘Newsbriefs’. Everyday in America on an average 2,713 cases of rape take place but it doesn’t appear in the news, since it has become a way of life for the Americans.

2.   Black sheep in every community:

I am aware that there are some Muslims who are dishonest, unreliable, who cheat, etc. but the media projects this as though only Muslims are involved in such activities. There are black sheep in every community. I know Muslims who are alcoholics and who can drink most of the non-Muslims under the table.

3.   Muslims best as a whole:

Inspite of all the black sheep in the Muslim community, Muslims taken on the whole, yet form the best community in the world. We are the biggest community of tee-totallers as a whole, i.e. those who don’t imbibe alcohol. Collectively, we are a community which gives the maximum charity in the world. There is not a single person in the world who can even show a candle to the Muslims where modesty is concerned; where sobriety is concerned; where human values and ethics are concerned.

4.   Don’t judge a car by its driver:

If you want to judge how good is the latest model of the "Mercedes" car and a person who does not know how to drive sits at the steering wheel and bangs up the car, who will you blame? The car or the driver? But naturally, the driver. To analyze how good the car is, a person should not look at the driver but see the ability and features of the car. How fast is it, what is its average fuel consumption, what are the safety measures, etc. Even if I agree for the sake of argument that the Muslims are bad, we can’t judge Islam by its followers? If you want to judge how good Islam is then judge it according to its authentic sources, i.e. the Glorious Qur’an and the Sahih Hadith.

5.   Judge Islam by its best follower i.e. Prophet Mohammed (pbuh):

If you practically want to check how good a car is put an expert driver behind the steering wheel. Similarly the best and the most exemplary follower of Islam by whom you can check how good Islam is, is the last and final messenger of God, Prophet Muhammad (pbuh). Besides Muslims, there are several honest and unbiased non-Muslim historians who have acclaimed that prophet Muhammad was the best human being. According to Michael H. Hart who wrote the book, ‘The Hundred Most Influential Men in History’, the topmost position, i.e. the number one position goes to the beloved prophet of Islam, Muhammad (pbuh). There are several such examples of non-Muslims paying great tributes to the prophet, like Thomas Carlyle, La-Martine, etc.

Islam is embraced by so many humans in all centuries because it is the Truth and it provides practical and comprehensive solutions to problems of humankind. Islam not only teaches good things but also shows practical ways of achieving that state of goodness.



Your surprise regarding many people embracing Islam is justified. Today, though Islam happens to be the fastest growing religion in the world, it also happens to be the religion about which people have maximum number of misconceptions. This is largely because of the virulent propaganda by the media about Islam.



A Christian surveyor, Professor Edward reported in the Time Magazine of April 16, 1979 that in a span of 150 years, from 1800 CE to 1950 CE “over 60,000 books have been written against Islam by the Christian West.”  Now, it is questionable, who has initiated, nurtured and collected the hatred which you have referred to, the Muslims or the Christian West?



Many are surprised that despite such propaganda being made against Islam, it still happens to be the fastest growing religion in today’s times. It is so, on the merits of its superior and noble teachings. Says Allah swt in the Glorious Qur'an:



“They (the non-Muslim enemies and critics of Islam) plot and plan, and Allah too plans; but the best of planners is Allah”.

(Al-Qur'an 8:30)

Answer 16

They embarrass the US in front of the world.