Homosexuality & Islam in Light of the Orlando Massacre

John R. Houk

© June 17, 2016

The Orlando Massacre conducted by the Muslim Omar Mateen opens all sorts controversial issues among the American people.

Among my fellow Conservatives it was an easy guess before details were released. it was another Muslim on a killing spree in which President Barack Hussein Obama would not acknowledge Islamic terrorism.

Among the Leftists the massacre was all about gun control and those crazy Right Wingers insisting the 2^nd Amendment allowing citizens to arm themselves to the teeth for protection.

Of course those to knee jerk reactions probably have some middle ground in which of course I lean more toward pro-2^nd Amendment Conservatives. (We who believe the government has become a huge albatross rather than a limited government. We simply do not trust how big government hijacks individual Liberty.)

The Orlando Massacre has evolved into so much more than the first knee jerk reactions of the Left and Right. We can add to the controversial list:

o   Homosexual activism vs. Christian Morality.

o   Muslim immigration (even though Mateen was a natural born American of Afghan parentage) vs. Homeland Security.

o   Are so-called Muslim moderates condemning the massacre out Taqiyya (deception) to America’s non-Muslim majority while secretly praising the statutes of Islamic Sharia and Allah’s will toward homosexuals?

o   Is ISIS directly pulling terrorist puppet strings among young Muslim immigrants and homegrown Muslims?

o   Are Muslims in America (citizen or not) following the Caliphate agenda that is propagated by more than just ISIS? Such as the Muslim Brotherhood and affiliates, Wahhabi proponents, various foreign Salafist groups and the Twelver Shias of Iran. In this case the issue is the U.S. Constitution Liberties vs. Caliphate Sharia Law.

o   Biblical Christians vs. Progressive Christians on defining morality based on the Bible vs. Modern Humanistic Multicultural mores.

o   These are just some issues off the top of my head, I am confident you could add to this list.

I’d like to address two issues that I am constantly criticized for by the Left. Those two issues are the epithetical words Homophobia and Islamophobia.

The literal meaning of those words is something I find umbrage with, which is likely one reason Leftists love to cast the words as grenades designed to shut someone up.

A Homophobe literally is one who has an unnatural fear of homosexuals. And an Islamophobe is one who has an unnatural fear of Muslims or the Islamic theopolitical religion. Most dictionaries take the epithet version that may run something like hatred, fear, prejudice and so on toward homosexuals or Muslims.

Let’s define phobia to get to my point.

The Free Dictionary Phobia definitions:

pho·bi·a -n

1. A persistent, abnormal, and irrational fear of a specific thing or situation that compels one to avoid it, despite the awareness and reassurance that it is not dangerous.

2. A strong fear, dislike, or aversion.

Phobia -n [C19: from Greek phobos fear]

(Psychiatry) psychiatry an abnormal intense and irrational fear of a given situation, organism, or object, also phobism

pho•bi•a  -n., pl. -bi•as. [1780–90; extracted from nouns ending in -phobia]

a persistent, irrational fear of a specific object, activity, or situation that leads to a compelling desire to avoid it.

-phobia [< Latin < Greek, =-phob(os) -phobe + -ia -ia]

A combining form meaning “dread of,” “phobic aversion toward,” “unreasonable antipathy toward” a given object: agoraphobia; xenophobia

ENCYCLOPÆDIA BRITANNICA phobia excerpt:

Phobia, an extreme, irrational fear of a specific object or situation. A phobia is classified as a type of anxiety disorder, since anxiety is the chief symptom experienced by the sufferer. Phobias are thought to be learned emotional responses. It is generally held that phobias occur when fear produced by an original threatening situation is transferred to other similar situations, with the original fear often repressed or forgotten. An excessive, unreasoning fear of water, for example, may be based on a forgotten childhood experience of almost drowning. The person accordingly tries to avoid that situation in the future, a response that, while reducing anxiety in the short term, reinforces the person’s association of the situation with the onset of anxiety.

The point is a phobia has more to do with fear and anxiety than hatred and prejudice. I neither have fear nor anxiety around homosexuals and Muslims (except perhaps in cases of the threat of physical violence which certainly comes from both groups when their agenda or ideology has openly been criticized.) Neither do I hate homosexuals and Muslims. However, there might be some benign prejudice against both groups but not for their lifestyles or beliefs. Rather my prejudice stems from both groups having militant factions that castigate Christianity.

Among homosexual activists their hate is seen in imposing their lifestyle to point forcing a Christian to submit to accepting the homosexuality even though specifically condemned by the Word of God.

Among Muslims, their considered holy and revered writings specifically call out Jews and Christians (aka People of the Book in the Quran) as people to despise and kill if they do not submit to the supremacy of Islam.

Homosexuality and the Bible

The Bible is fairly specific that only amending the words changes the intended meanings. (But Leftist-oriented people enjoy changing Original Intent [See Also HERE] wording to imposed Humanistic evolving meanings.)

Leviticus 18:22; 20:13; Romans 1:24, 26-28; 1 Corinthians 6: 9-10 (NKJV)

Leviticus 18:22

You shall not lie with a male as with a woman. It is an abomination.

Leviticus 20:13

If a man lies with a male as he lies with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination. They shall surely be put to death. Their blood shall be upon them.

Romans 1:24, 26-28

²⁴ Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves,

²⁶ For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. ²⁷ Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due.

²⁸ And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting;

1 Corinthians 6:9-10

⁹ Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals,^[a] nor sodomites, ¹⁰ nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God.

After reading these Holy Scriptures, Homosexuals typically hurl profanity my way in the comment section or the more civilized Homosexuals begin a lecture telling me I am bigoted in no uncertain terms. I never receive the animosity of condemnation from homosexuals because – well, the Creator of all that exists spoke the Words. I just shared them. Their real problem is not being accepted by the Creator so typically they deny the Creator exists or vainly attempt to redefine the Original Intent of God’s Word.

To save a little time in the comment section, I do have some Good News from the Word of God:

Romans 7:21-25; 8:1-4, 11-14, 22-25, 31-39 (NKJV)

Romans 7:21-25

²¹ I find then a law, that evil is present with me, the one who wills to do good. ²² For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man.²³ But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. ²⁴ O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? ²⁵ I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!

So then, with the mind I myself serve the law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin.

Romans 8:1-4

There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus,^[a] who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. ² For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. ³ For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh,⁴ that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

Romans 8:11-14

¹¹ But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.

¹² Therefore, brethren, we are debtors—not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. ¹³ For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. ¹⁴ For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.

Romans 8:22-25

²² For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. ²³ Not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body. ²⁴ For we were saved in this hope, but hope that is seen is not hope; for why does one still hope for what he sees? ²⁵ But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with perseverance.

Romans 8:31-39

³¹ What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? ³² He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?³³ Who shall bring a charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies.³⁴ Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us. ³⁵ Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? ³⁶ As it is written:

“For Your sake we are killed all day long;
We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.”^[a]

³⁷ Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. ³⁸ For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come,³⁹ nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

If you are subject to any action separating you from God Almighty in Christ and have read down this far, you are probably interested in this Good News that we can all be Redeemed through the same Resurrection power that raised our Lord from the dead. If that be the case I encourage you to read Romans chapters 1-16. Herein is the true Love of God that unfortunately longtime Christians too often forget themselves.

I realize that contrasting the homosexual lifestyle with Biblical Morality smacks of Christian Supremacism. The thing is the Christian Supremacism I advocate is absolutely non-violent. When a person claiming to be a Christian responds to the homosexual lifestyle with violence, that is just as ungodly as homosexuality. The only justification for violence is self-defense against violent actions.

Which leads me to the difference between Christian Supremacism and Islamic Supremacism.

Christianity vs. Islam

The difference between Christian (i.e. Biblical) Supremacism and Islamic Supremacism is that Christians are to share the Good News of the Redemptive act of Jesus Christ the Son of God in which hearer freely chooses to believe or disbelieve with no consequence until the Last Judgment. After sifting through all the abrogated suras of the Quran, Muslims share the supremacy of their Prophet and their deity Allah and if you choose reject the Muslim invitation you have three Quranic choices: Convert, not convert but acknowledge Islam is superior to your beliefs OR die.

Here are some annotated Quran suras that highlight how Muslims are to treat Jews, Christians and polytheists from The Religion of Peace:

Quran (2:191-193) - "And kill them wherever you find them, and turn them out from where they have turned you out. And Al-Fitnah [disbelief or unrest] is worse than killing... but if they desist, then lo! Allah is forgiving and merciful. And fight them until there is no more Fitnah [disbelief and worshipping of others along with Allah] and worship is for Allah alone. But if they cease, let there be no transgression except against Az-Zalimun (the polytheists, and wrong-doers, etc.)" (Translation is from the Noble Quran) The verse prior to this (190) refers to "fighting for the cause of Allah those who fight you" leading some to believe that the entire passage refers to a defensive war in which Muslims are defending their homes and families. The historical context of this passage is not defensive warfare, however, since Muhammad and his Muslims had just relocated to Medina and were not under attack by their Meccan adversaries. In fact, the verses urge offensive warfare, in that Muslims are to drive Meccans out of their own city (which they later did). Verse 190 thus means to fight those who offer resistance to Allah's rule (ie. Muslim conquest). The use of the word "persecution" by some Muslim translators is disingenuous (the actual Arabic words for persecution - "idtihad" - and oppression - a variation of "z-l-m" - do not appear in the verse). The word used instead, "fitna", can mean disbelief, or the disorder that results from unbelief or temptation. This is certainly what is meant in this context since the violence is explicitly commissioned "until religion is for Allah" - ie. unbelievers desist in their unbelief.

…

Quran (3:56) - "As to those who reject faith, I will punish them with terrible agony in this world and in the Hereafter, nor will they have anyone to help."

Quran (3:151) - "Soon shall We cast terror into the hearts of the Unbelievers, for that they joined companions with Allah, for which He had sent no authority". This speaks directly of polytheists, yet it also includes Christians, since they believe in the Trinity (ie. what Muhammad incorrectly believed to be 'joining companions to Allah').

…

Quran (4:89) - "They but wish that ye should reject Faith, as they do, and thus be on the same footing (as they): But take not friends from their ranks until they flee in the way of Allah (From what is forbidden). But if they turn renegades, seize them and slay them wherever ye find them; and (in any case) take no friends or helpers from their ranks."

…

Quran (5:33) - "The punishment of those who wage war against Allah and His messenger and strive to make mischief in the land is only this, that they should be murdered or crucified or their hands and their feet should be cut off on opposite sides or they should be imprisoned; this shall be as a disgrace for them in this world, and in the hereafter they shall have a grievous chastisement"

Quran (8:12) - "I will cast terror into the hearts of those who disbelieve. Therefore strike off their heads and strike off every fingertip of them" No reasonable person would interpret this to mean a spiritual struggle.

Quran (8:39) - "And fight with them until there is no more fitna (disorder, unbelief) and religion is all for Allah" Some translations interpret "fitna" as "persecution", but the traditional understanding of this word is not supported by the historical context (See notes for 2:193). The Meccans were simply refusing Muhammad access to their city during Haj. Other Muslims were allowed to travel there - just not as an armed group, since Muhammad had declared war on Mecca prior to his eviction. The Meccans were also acting in defense of their religion, since it was Muhammad's intention to destroy their idols and establish Islam by force (which he later did). Hence the critical part of this verse is to fight until "religion is only for Allah", meaning that the true justification of violence was the unbelief of the opposition. According to the Sira (Ibn Ishaq/Hisham 324) Muhammad further explains that "Allah must have no rivals."

Quran (8:57) - "If thou comest on them in the war, deal with them so as to strike fear in those who are behind them, that haply they may remember."

Quran (8:67) - "It is not for a Prophet that he should have prisoners of war until he had made a great slaughter in the land..."

…

Quran (9:5) - "So when the sacred months have passed away, then slay the idolaters wherever you find them, and take them captive and besiege them and lie in wait for them in every ambush, then if they repent and keep up prayer and pay the poor-rate, leave their way free to them.” According to this verse, the best way of staying safe from Muslim violence at the time of Muhammad was to convert to Islam: prayer (salat) and the poor tax (zakat) are among the religion's Five Pillars. The popular claim that the Quran only inspires violence within the context of self-defense is seriously challenged by this passage as well, since the Muslims to whom it was written were obviously not under attack. Had they been, then there would have been no waiting period (earlier verses make it a duty for Muslims to fight in self-defense, even during the sacred months). The historical context is Mecca after the idolaters were subjugated by Muhammad and posed no threat. Once the Muslims had power, they violently evicted those unbelievers who would not convert.

Quran (9:14) - "Fight against them so that Allah will punish them by your hands and disgrace them and give you victory over them and heal the breasts of a believing people." Humiliating and hurting non-believers not only has the blessing of Allah, but it is ordered as a means of carrying out his punishment and even "healing" the hearts of Muslims.

…

Quran (9:29) - "Fight those who believe not in Allah nor the Last Day, nor hold that forbidden which hath been forbidden by Allah and His Messenger, nor acknowledge the religion of Truth, (even if they are) of the People of the Book, until they pay the Jizya with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued." "People of the Book" refers to Christians and Jews. According to this verse, they are to be violently subjugated, with the sole justification being their religious status. Verse 9:33 tells Muslims that Allah has charted them to make Islam "superior over all religions. "This chapter was one of the final "revelations" from Allah and it set in motion the tenacious military expansion, in which Muhammad's companions managed to conquer two-thirds of the Christian world in the next 100 years. Islam is intended to dominate all other people and faiths. 

…

Quran (17:16) - "And when We wish to destroy a town, We send Our commandment to the people of it who lead easy lives, but they transgress therein; thus the word proves true against it, so We destroy it with utter destruction." Note that the crime is moral transgression, and the punishment is "utter destruction." (Before ordering the 9/11 attacks, Osama bin Laden first issued Americans an invitation to Islam).

…

Quran (25:52) - "Therefore listen not to the Unbelievers, but strive against them with the utmost strenuousness..." "Strive against" is Jihad - obviously not in the personal context. It's also significant to point out that this is a Meccan verse.

Quran (33:60-62) - "If the hypocrites, and those in whose hearts is a disease, and the alarmists in the city do not cease, We verily shall urge thee on against them, then they will be your neighbors in it but a little while. Accursed, they will be seized wherever found and slain with a (fierce) slaughter." This passage sanctions the slaughter (rendered "merciless" and "horrible murder" in other translations) against three groups: Hypocrites (Muslims who refuse to "fight in the way of Allah" (3:167) and hence don't act as Muslims should), those with "diseased hearts" (which include Jews and Christians 5:51-52), and "alarmists" or "agitators who include those who merely speak out against Islam, according to Muhammad's biographers. It is worth noting that the victims are to be sought out by Muslims, which is what today's terrorists do. If this passage is meant merely to apply to the city of Medina, then it is unclear why it is included in Allah's eternal word to Muslim generations.

Quran (47:3-4) - "Those who disbelieve follow falsehood, while those who believe follow the truth from their Lord... So, when you meet (in fight Jihad in Allah's Cause), those who disbelieve smite at their necks till when you have killed and wounded many of them, then bind a bond firmly (on them, i.e. take them as captives)... If it had been Allah's Will, He Himself could certainly have punished them (without you). But (He lets you fight), in order to test you, some with others. But those who are killed in the Way of Allah, He will never let their deeds be lost." Those who reject Allah are to be killed in Jihad. The wounded are to be held captive for ransom. The only reason Allah doesn't do the dirty work himself is to to test the faithfulness of Muslims. Those who kill pass the test. 

… READ ENTIRETY (What Does Islam Teach About... Violence; The Religion of Peace; ©2002 - 2016 All Rights Reserved)

Trust me there is more in website list of the Quran. I tried to focus on Islam’s perspective on non-Muslims, but the website also addresses violence against Muslims who apostate their religion or do not properly follow its directives. Then The Religion of Peace examines violence against non-Muslims found in the revered (but not considered words of Allah via Mohammed) writings of the Hadith and Sira.

Now if directed violence against Jews, Christians and polytheists is not bad enough, there are the Quranic suras that blaspheme Christianity in particular (But again the New Testament does not command to render for evil but only in self-defense from physical violence).

The centrality of Christian faith is that Jesus is the Son of God born from a human vessel Mary who at the time was a virgin. Thus Jesus is fully God and fully man in nature. Jesus’ divine nature made him the perfect sacrifice to pay for Adam’s fall and reunite humanity with God Almighty. (Yes, I’m aware my Jewish friends disagree with this, but they don’t want to kill me over our disagreement) That sacrifice was seen in Jesus unjustly accused of crimes he didn’t commit and being killed on the Cross. THEN three days later the Power of the Father resurrects the Son in bodily form clothed with the Divine glory Jesus had before he was incarnated as a human in Mary’s womb.

Christians disagree on various points but the above is what all sects and Denominations agree on as a matter of faith in God’s Grace in Jesus Christ. So what does the Quran say about the central faith of Christianity? From a Christian perspective it is blasphemous:

JESUS CHRIST IS THE SON OF GOD

The Qu’ran clearly states that Allah has NO son.

“They say, ‘God has begotten a son.’ God forbid! Self-sufficient is He. His is all that the heavens and the earth contain. Surely for this you have no sanction. Whould you say of God what you know not?” — Qur’an 10:68

“Such was Jesus, the son of Mary. That is the whole truth, which they still doubt. God forbid that He Himself should beget a son! When He decrees a thing He need only say: ‘Be,’ and it is.” —Qur’an 19:35

“Those who say: ‘The Lord of Mercy has begotten a son,’ preach a monstrous falsehood, at which the very heavens might crack, the earth break asunder, and the mountains crumble to dust. That they should ascribe a son to the Merciful, when it does not become the Lord of Mercy to beget one!” — Qur’an 19:88

“Never has God begotten a son, nor is there any other god besides Him. Were this otherwise, each god would govern his own creation, each holding himself above the other. Exalted be God above their falsehoods!” — Qur’an 23:91

Clearly, the Qu’ran denies that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. (THE GOD OF THE HOLY BIBLE VS. THE ALLAH OF THE QU’RAN; By Geri Ungurean; Now The End Begins; 5/8/15)

Quran on Death and Resurrection

Quran 4:156-158 (SAHIH INTERNATIONAL)

And [We cursed them] for their disbelief and their saying against Mary a great slander, And [for] their saying, "Indeed, we have killed the Messiah, Jesus, the son of Mary, the messenger of Allah." And they did not kill him, nor did they crucify him; but [another] was made to resemble him to them. And indeed, those who differ over it are in doubt about it. They have no knowledge of it except the following of assumption. And they did not kill him, for certain. Rather, Allah raised him to Himself. And ever is Allah Exalted in Might and Wise.

There Islamic theologians that have developed a view of a substitution theory in that Judas was crucified in place of Jesus. Which includes a later death of Jesus and “Allah” raising the natural death body of Jesus into Islam’s heaven. Here are some excerpts:

… Even so, the Jews were not satisfied, and they went to the king of Damascus at that time, a Greek polytheist who worshipped the stars. They told him that there was a man in Bayt Al-Maqdis misguiding and dividing the people in Jerusalem and stirring unrest among the king's subjects. The king became angry and wrote to his deputy in Jerusalem to arrest the rebel leader, stop him from causing unrest, crucify him and make him wear a crown of thorns. When the king's deputy in Jerusalem received these orders, he went with some Jews to the house that `Isa was residing in, and he was then with twelve, thirteen or seventeen of his companions. That day was a Friday, in the evening. They surrounded `Isa in the house, and when he felt that they would soon enter the house or that he would sooner or later have to leave it, he said to his companions, "Who volunteers to be made to look like me, for which he will be my companion in Paradise'' A young man volunteered, but `Isa thought that he was too young. He asked the question a second and third time, each time the young man volunteering, prompting `Isa to say, "Well then, you will be that man.'' Allah made the young man look exactly like `Isa, while a hole opened in the roof of the house, and `Isa was made to sleep and ascended to heaven while asleep. Allah said,

(And (remember) when Allah said: "O `Isa! I will take you and raise you to Myself.'') When `Isa ascended, those who were in the house came out. When those surrounding the house saw the man who looked like `Isa, they thought that he was `Isa. So they took him at night, crucified him and placed a crown of thorns on his head. The Jews then boasted that they killed `Isa and some Christians accepted their false claim, due to their ignorance and lack of reason. As for those who were in the house with `Isa, they witnessed his ascension to heaven, while the rest thought that the Jews killed `Isa by crucifixion. They even said that Maryam sat under the corpse of the crucified man and cried, and they say that the dead man spoke to her. All this was a test from Allah for His servants out of His wisdom. Allah explained this matter in the Glorious Qur'an which He sent to His honorable Messenger, whom He supported with miracles and clear, unequivocal evidence. …

… (Tafsir Ibn Kathir on 4:157)

Tafsir al-Jalalayn is one of the most significant tafsirs for the study of the Qur’an. … Tafsir al-Jalalayn is generally regarded as one of the most easily accessible works of Qur’anic exegesis because of its simple style and one volume length. …

Al-Jalalayn on [Quran] 4:157

… And yet they did not slay him nor did they crucify him, but he, the one slain and crucified, who was an associate of theirs [the Jews], was given the resemblance, of Jesus. In other words, God cast his [Jesus's] likeness to him and so they thought it was him [Jesus]. And those who disagree concerning him, that is, concerning Jesus, are surely in doubt regarding, the slaying of him, for some of them said, when they saw the slain man: the face is that of Jesus, but the body is not his, and so it is not he; and others said: no, it is he. They do not have any knowledge of, the slaying of, him, only the pursuit of conjecture … (Tafsir Al Jalalayn on 4:157)

As pointed out elsewhere on Answering-Islam (*), there is disagreement on who substituted Christ:

"1. God made someone look like Jesus who was then crucified in the place of Christ. This is known as the substitution theory, but this interpretation is beset with many problems. First, who in fact was made to look like Christ? Muslims were not unanimous:

A. Some say that it was Judas.

B. Others say it was one of Jesus’ disciples.

C. Still others say that it was a Roman soldier named Titawus."

The Swoon Theory

2. Jesus was crucified but did not die. He swooned on the cross and later recovered.

Although the swoon theory is held mainly by the Ahmaddiyas and the Nation of Islam, groups that are considered heretical, there are also orthodox Sunni Muslims who have adopted this theory as well. The most famous Sunni to adopt and embrace this view for polemical purposes is Ahmed Deedat.

Akbarally Meherally is another one who has decided to embrace this theory (Article 1, Article 2). Meherally even goes so far as to deny the substitution theory.

Muslim apologist Shabir Ally tried to defend this theory (quite unsuccessfully I might add) in his debate with Dr. William Lane Craig, "Did Jesus of Nazareth Physically Rise from the Dead?", held on Monday, March 4, 2003 at the University of Toronto. …

…

The Legend Theory

3. The crucifixion didn't even happen but was a later invention/legend. The late Muhammad Asad held this view:

Thus, the Qur'an categorically denies the story of the crucifixion of Jesus. There exist, among Muslims, many FANCIFUL LEGENDS telling us that at the last moment God substituted for Jesus a person closely resembling him (according to some accounts, that person was Judas), who was subsequently crucified in his place. However, none of these LEGENDS finds the slightest support in the Qur'an or in authentic Traditions, and the stories produced in this connection by the classical commentators must be summarily rejected. They represent no more than confused attempts at "harmonizing" the Qur'anic statement that Jesus was not crucified with the graphic description, in the Gospels, of his crucifixion. The story of the crucifixion as such has been succinctly explained in the Qur'anic phrase wa-sakin shubbiha lahum, which I render as "but it only appeared to them as if it had been so" - implying that in the course of time, long after the time of Jesus, a legend had somehow grown up (possibly under the then-powerful influence of Mithraistic beliefs) to the effect that he had died on the cross in order to atone for the "original sin" with which mankind is allegedly burdened; and this legend became so firmly established among the latter-day followers of Jesus that even his enemies, the Jews, began to believe it - albeit in a derogatory sense (for crucifixion was, in those times, a heinous form of death-penalty reserved for the lowest of criminals). … (see Qamas, art. khayala, as well as Lane II, 833, and IV, 1500). (p. 134, fn. 171, online source; capital and underlined emphasis ours)

The Natural Death Theory

Moiz Amjad of Understanding-Islam.com defends his theory that the Qur'an teaches Jesus died naturally here.

9th Century Muslim Historian Al Tabari:

… This article establishes the view of Al-Tabari and his position that Jesus was crucified and raised into heaven.

… READ ENTIRETY (The Confusion of Islam regarding the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ; By Derik Adams; Answering Islam)

Yeah, I don’t care whichever Muslim tells you the Allah of the Quran is the same as God Almighty of the Bible. The discrepancies and the time period that Mohammed lived in simply discredits Quran as at the very least a collection of Mohammed sayings he copied to entice Jews and Christians to accept him as a Prophet and enough Arab theo-philosophy to convince medieval Arab minds that there must be something to this desert pirate – after all he keeps winning and supplying his adherents with blood-bought booty.

But here is the clincher why every Christian should disdain Islam. That theopolitical religion is an antichrist ideology designed to fool Christians into denying the Son of God as the Resurrected expiation of the fall of Adam.

Matthew 24:4-5, 23-25; 1 John 2:18, 22-25; 4:1-3 (NKJV)

Matthew 24:4-5, 23-25

⁴ And Jesus answered and said to them: “Take heed that no one deceives you. ⁵ For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many.

²³ “Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There!’ do not believe it. ²⁴ For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. ²⁵ See, I have told you beforehand.

1 John 2:18, 22-25

¹⁸ Little children, it is the last hour; and as you have heard that the^[a]Antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come, by which we know that it is the last hour.

²² Who is a liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist who denies the Father and the Son. ²³ Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father either; he who acknowledges the Son has the Father also.

²⁴ Therefore let that abide in you which you heard from the beginning. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, you also will abide in the Son and in the Father. ²⁵ And this is the promise that He has promised us—eternal life.

1 John 4:1-3

Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world.² By this you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God, ³ and every spirit that does not confess that^[a] Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world.

I have some Good News for Muslim adherents. That news is the exact same as that above to those who choose a homosexual lifestyle. Makes Jesus Christ the Son of God, Who arose from the dead to everlasting life on the third after His Crucifixion and now sits at the right hand of the Father making continuous intercession on behalf who believe on Him as their Lord – one of the three persons – Father, Son and Holy Spirit, Who is ONE GOD.

Romans 7:21-25; 8:1-4, 11-14, 22-25, 31-39 (NKJV)

JRH 6/17/16

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