ROBERRTTTT :) I'm so glad you posted here and now..because I was just reading something which should be of great interest to you.... in fact.. I came here just now thinking 'How can I get this to Robert'? and viola.. "before you ask..."

Ok.. please read this.

DIFFICULT PASSAGES IN THE BIBLE.

"Does the Bible Authorize rape of captives" Deuteronomy 21:10-14

http://www.utoronto.ca/wjudaism/journal/vol1n1/v1n1elma.htm

I think you will find it very interesting. I'd value your considered response.

ON TOPIC.. it sounds like we are on the same page mostly. The difference is, I condemn 'Islam'.. you just condemn what you see as 'abbherations' of Islam or you see the facts I focus on as 'selective cherry picking'.

I totally condemn any unbiblical action by Christians.. the difficulty is, as you would note from my post, knowing how much is fact and how much is media spin. In Phelps case it is overwhelming and from his own video'd mouth. There is no 'spin'..its alllll 'him'.

Knowing some background to the EB cases reported in the Media.. "the other side".. facts left out in the stories.. I am less sympathetic to just condemn any group on the basis of 'media' spin.

Notice how in response to the Logan sky cowboy thread GINX went straight to 'snopes' (whatever that is) and declared "I've not found anything dodgy...yet" (paraphrase) ..

So, to answer the topic question "Will 'reasonable' Christians denounce it".. I think 'yes'.

ISLAM.. I denounce it by looking closely at:

1/ The Quran... in areas which are not 'cherry picking' (A 'command' or 'permission' is exactly that)
2/ Hadith... which supports the understanding of point 1.
3/ History,(Mohammad and Companions) which in turn supports both points 1 and 2.

If point 2 or point 3 DISagreed with point 1, you could rightly accuse me of 'cherry picking and spin'...but they don't. Hence.. the verdict on the charge 'cherry picking' is... 'innocent of all charges' :) THANK you Jury, you are dismissed. (cheques are in the mail :)

R0bert sums it up quite well. I'm happy to denounce movements when they do harm - Al-Qaeda, Jemaah Islaamiyah, all of the above.

What I suppose I'm getting at here, is that when muslims don't immediately reject fringe movements, they are tarred and pilloried.

When they give explanations, this is dismissed as either pussyfooting around the issue, or they are still secretly supporting them.

Witness the criticism levelled at tariq ramadan. Unless he completely rejects fringe movements outright, he is shunned by many.

However, I see that when runner and yourself make excuses for various movements it's acceptable - the point I'm getting at boaz, regardless of how bad these movements are - next time you condemn moderate muslims for not immediately shunning fringe movements, stop and realise that you just 'pussyfooted' around what many believe to be a fringe movement.

If I were to adopt the same tactics you and others use to attack Islam, I'd be saying that you secretly support the tricking of young women into giving up their centrelink payments, as well as contracts that cut them off from friends.

Regardless of whether this is the truth of mercy ministries.

So my end point?

Don't be so damn judgemental.

How about a list of the Christian suicide bombers and Christians wanting to kill non-Christians just because they are not Christians?

There is no such list, of course. Apologists for Islam like TRTL - a sad fringe dweller and specatator of real life, if ever there was one - appear to be so on the outer with their own kind that they need to attack their own kind at every opportunity.

There will be no credits for TRTL and his kind from Muslims despite pathetic whimpering like this.

Boaz

In organizations like Teen challenge and Mercy ministries people 'sign over their benefits' because they not only are fed and accommodated but often need 24 hour care. These organizations actually save the Government heaps because the people going have had habitual drug, alcohol and other problems which has turned them into nasty pieces of work. They lack respect for themselves and others. It is usually the last resort with for these people and the 'benefits' they hand over don't nearly cover the costs they incur. In WA even some judges have sent offenders to these rehab places.Most of the cost is incurred by generous donations. As I mentioned before TRTL is either naive or dishonest in his/her misrepresentation. Theology aside his comparison with Islam is pathetic to say the least.

Robert

No one condemns you to hell for not being a 'Christian'. We are all born with a sinful nature and thus sin. God provided the answer to that in Christ. The problem is that most love the darkness more than light and refuse His love, kindness and forgiveness. No one has done more for you and me than God.

TRTL; what an excellent question! When I read your post I was delighted that this would give some clearly defined answers.

Just shows how naive one can be, doesn't it?

Small fry incidents TRTL.
In a world of hundreds of millions of born again christians, its not worth much of a mention.
I really think you went looking, looking, looking to poke at and to condemn christians rather than observe the greater truths of the spirit battle on earth.
As for me .......
1. I know the spirit world. Demons and evil spirit powers are the root cause of such things as eating disorders, anxiety etc. You can also include lust (porn and masturbation young fellows), fear, all other addictions and many other life troubles in this cluster.
If Mercy Ministries have a different type of way of dealing with the friends of their patients then thats probably how they deal with it. They will need to keep bad influences away so healing can begin.
2.
Re: Catch the Fire and the tearing down of mosques. Im not really for that. Whats built shoudnt be touched...THOUGH...Islam still has to be halted.
Islam moves forward with a global plan to conquer and displace everything else.
Along that road, if they get their chance, they will kill many people. This we see, with our eyes, each day in the muslim countries. They kill each other and would do it here if they got the chance. No more mosques as powers bases is my heart.
3. As for the Westboro church. They were way out of line (if its extreme it will frequently live in Amercia). The Bible tells us not to judge or to say who will go up or who will go down.
I bet you were rubbing your hands together when you thought up this thread..."oh, this will get the christians going"!
Nah...to small in the incidents for such a vast global christian church.