Jesus Was The Greatest Muslim

I'd like to share some things I've had on my heart, regarding geopolitical discourse.

In other words: people arguing on television and on the radio.

People are getting freaked out and divided, which is typical, by the typical things that divide human beings, brothers, sisters, friends.

People who have more in common than they have different, if only they are given the opportunity to search and find out these commonalities.

This may sound controversial.

Sometimes people ask me if I'm Muslim.

I always answer yes!

I then go on to explain that the term “muslim” is from the term “islam” which means “in submission; submits to God.”

I always follow with that, looking for an opportunity to teach somebody some reality in sharing the etymology of that term.

So I say “yes, absolutely, I submit to God! I am one who is always in submission, or at least that's my aim, my heart, because sometimes I fall short.”

It gives me a way to go further into a conversation that has to do with calling things as they are, not as people may perceive them to be, like rhetoric on television and the things that instigate people; fear, propaganda, all of those things...

I read a lot, I do a lot of research, to assist me in my writing.

I find a lot of things out and when responding to such questions, I find a way to give an answer that is clearer [more insightful and based on actual definitions] than the distraction of unclear answers [slanderous, fear-based, nationalistic, ideological propaganda] and things that are heard in organized religion, whichever religion it may be.

Because, for example:

During the Crusades, some of the people who lived in what is called today Palestine (that certain part of the Middle East, that was Israel, whatever you would label that land) believed themselves Christians and were killed by the invaders who believed themselves to be Christians (the Crusaders).

[there was no distinguishing between people in Palestine that provided for exterior identification between the different religions because their clothes were very similar, all wearing 'religious' attire if you will, and ethnically they were different from the invading European and Caucus Crusaders]

If you would have asked those people who were being slaughtered what their definition of a Christian was, would they have pointed to those “Christians” doing the killing?

If one submits to God, as I understand it, we'd have to look at what I believe to be the greatest example of One who submitted to God: a man who was born in Nazareth.

As the testimony goes according to those who walked with Him and received revelations, He submitted to God to the point of death; “He submitted unto death” it says.

So can you imagine that?

Trusting God all the way to the point of death.

Not defending oneself, but submitting your will, your thoughts, your struggles, your fears, your issues.

Submitting all those things and the things that we battle with/within.