StG “What horrifies me though is my underlying intolerance and suspicion of Muslims. I'm actually busting to do a course on Arabic and Islam to learn for myself the truth.”

What concerns me more is the intolerance of Muslims.

I am happy with my attitude and “tolerance:” but

I am becoming increasingly suspicious of women who insist on hiding their faces, men who demand their woman (or women) hide her face and that people, who risk death on the high seas to get here, claiming persecution as refugees go on to them Australia conforms or risks danger from their intolerance of non-Muslims.

In short, any Muslim who is not prepared to accept and RESPECT the religious norms of the vast majority of Judea-Christians in Australia are better off finding somewhere else to live.

TRUTHNOW78... whistler exists in a state of perpetual denial of real life. I would not bother to acknowledge her pointless expressions in pursuit of fantasy.

People who call themselves muslims are not a problem. It is those who follow and obey the teachings of their prophet that are intolerant and violent. INdonesia has many peace loving muslims. Thankfully many of them can't read the Koran so don't know what is expected of them from Allah.

I worked with a woman who married a muslim from Algeria. Unfortunately she was gullible and curious of difference like many western world women tend to be in the name of 'tolerance. Sure enough she found out to late that he had other wives in Malaysia and other parts of the world. Once her money was gone so was he. This is not an isolated incident and is one that true muslims would see nothing wrong with. Muslims believe it is okay to lie as long as they are not shamed. This leads to all sorts of abominations.

Yabby,

Thanks mate. I'll defintely sus it out.

StG,
You should note that from all the responses so far that there is as much intolerance, hostility and generalisation coming from both sides.

Added to this is the inability of many to discriminate between what is specific religious observance and cultural tradition.

Women from the world's largest Muslim nation do not necessarily cover their faces and one was even their Prime Minister not so long ago so not much oppression there. Even in Pakistan, Bhutto was a viable candidate but was assassinated.

Except for an extremist minority (which we also have) the differences between most religions comes down to marketing.

We had it in for the Jews only 50 years ago, now that the Communists have faded it's somebody else's turn.

StG: << What horrifies me though is my underlying intolerance and suspicion of Muslims. I'm actually busting to do a course on Arabic and Islam to learn for myself the truth. >>

What a refreshing approach, particularly from a practising Christian. Where will it end up? Who knows, but I think that StG's strategy is the most likely to result in mutual tolerance and understanding, unlike those that are based on the fear, ignorance and deliberate misinformation that is are all too common.

Good on you, StG.

Dear StG,

Islam is one of the world's major religions.
It claims the allegiance of a fifth of the
entire human population. Westerners often
think of Islam as an Arab religion, most
Muslims are not Arabs. The largest Muslim
populations are in Indonesia and India, and
there are large concentrations of Muslims in
China and the former Soviet Union. Islam is
the second-largest faith in Europe after
Christianity, and it competes with Christianity
in many black African countries. Trends in Islamic
societies, therefore, are potentially of global
importance.

Over the past decade, religious fervor has erupted
in the Islamic world in general and in the MIddle
East in particular. This fervor has been inspired
by fundamentalism, a commitment to, and reliance on,
the traditional basics of religious doctrine.

To many of us Islamic fundamentalism seems like a
return to medieval morality. It conjures up images
of women behind veils, of adulterers being stoned,
of thieves having their hands cut off, of public
floggings and executions, of martyrdom in holy wars,
and in very extreme cases, of political fanaticism
exemplified in aircraft hijackings and terrorist
bombings.

This picture is rather distorted, as its based on what's
newsworthy rather than what's typical.

Your willingness to learn more about Islam does you
credit and it's a step in the right direction.
Only through education can both sides begin to
understand our differences and find what unites us,
rather than what separates us. There's enough hatred
in the world. In order to survive, we have to learn
to co-exist with each other if this planet is to
survive.