Islamic apologists in the West routinely claim that Islam has no death penalty for apostasy. Unfortunately, misunderstanders of Islam abound in large numbers, and for some reason they cannot shake the notion that Islam does mandate death for those who are considered to have left the faith. Why do they persist in this misunderstanding? Maybe it’s because Muhammad commanded: “Whoever changed his Islamic religion, then kill him” (Bukhari 9.84.57). This is still the position of all the schools of Islamic jurisprudence, both Sunni and Shi’ite. Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi, the most renowned and prominent Muslim cleric in the world, has stated: “The Muslim jurists are unanimous that apostates must be punished, yet they differ as to determining the kind of punishment to be inflicted upon them. The majority of them, including the four main schools of jurisprudence (Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi`i, and Hanbali) as well as the other four schools of jurisprudence (the four Shiite schools of Az-Zaidiyyah, Al-Ithna-`ashriyyah, Al-Ja`fariyyah, and Az-Zaheriyyah) agree that apostates must be executed.”
There is only disagreement over whether the law applies only to men, or to women also – some authorities hold that apostate women should not be killed, but only imprisoned in their houses until death.
“Convert from Islam in Uganda, Former Sheikh, Says Muslim Relatives Poisoned Him,” by Jeremy Reynalds for Assist News, April 9 (thanks to The Religion of Peace):
Muslim relatives of a convert from Islam in a village in eastern Uganda last week tried to poison him to death, the Christian told Morning Star News.According to a story by Morning Star News, Hassan Muwanguzi, who lost his wife and job as a schoolteacher shortly after his conversion in 2003, was hospitalized on March 31 in Mbale. That was after an aunt who called a family gathering in Kadimukoli village, Budaka District, put insecticide in his tea, he said.“After eating and taking tea, I started feeling stomachache, then I realized that she was the one responsible for it – and I believe she did not do it alone, since they have been hunting for me directly and indirectly, because when I left them and converted to Christianity it pained them so much,” Muwanguzi said in an email.He added, “The reason they want to kill me is very clear – it is because of being a convert to Christianity; above all, to them it is like I brought shame by converting, as a (former) sheikh. But to God the Almighty Father, this was His plan for me to expand His Kingdom.”A physician who treated him, identified only as Dr. Rashid, told Morning Star News that the substance Muwanguzi ingested was possibly diazinon. That’s an organic acid used in insecticides, as his condition slightly improved under atropine, the antidote for diazinon.“When Hassan Muwanguzi was brought in to our clinic, he was not able to take in food, including liquids, as he had vomiting with abdominal cramps,” Morning Star News reported Dr. Rashid said.Like Us on Facebook Subscribe to eNewsletterHe added, “He had to be given (intravenous) drips. He looked confused with slurred speech. His vision was getting very poor, and he could not even recognize the friend who brought him in.”Doctors immediately suspected diazinon or other organophosphates used for pest control, he said.“We had to treat him with atropine drugs, which led to his improvement,” Dr. Rashid said.The doctor recommended a more specialized diagnosis at a larger hospital in Kampala, but Muwanguzi, who left the hospital on April 7, said he cannot afford it.“We left yesterday in the evening hours due to lack of funds for treatment,” Muwanguzi said. “I appeal to all brothers and sisters in the Lord to help me and send us some funds so I can I pay the medical bills and also to finish the treatment, because if I fail to continue and finish the treatment, then I may die and my family will perish.”A pastor close to Muwanguzi agreed that he needed further treatment.
“He needs to be taken to Mulago National Referral Hospital in Kampala for more diagnosis to ascertain the extent of the poison in his blood,” said Bishop James Kinyewa….
No comments:
Post a Comment