Factors preventing people from conversion to Islam

[9-10ths_Penguin]

@9-10ths

What if Islam isn't the problem? What if its a combination of socio-political attitudes and people being out right ignorant?

What is "Islam"?

If you think there's some sort of "true Islam" floating out there seperate from the sum total of the beliefs of all the actual Muslims, then it seems to me that you've already accepted that Islam was authored by some source external to humanity.

However, I've found things that I consider very disagreable in "true Islam" (every version of it ) that's ever been presented to me.

 

[Vendetta]

What is "Islam"?

If you think there's some sort of "true Islam" floating out there seperate from the sum total of the beliefs of all the actual Muslims, then it seems to me that you've already accepted that Islam was authored by some source external to humanity.

However, I've found things that I consider very disagreable in "true Islam" (every version of it ) that's ever been presented to me.

Islam is Islam just like a science book is a science book. I am referring to gross interpretations of the Holy Quran and the Islamic message.

 

[LuisDantas]

@9-10ths

What if Islam isn't the problem? What if its a combination of socio-political attitudes and people being out right ignorant?

What do you mean exactly? Islam, as an ideal, is of course not "the problem". It can't possibly be, from what I understand of the concept.

But Islam as a religion that demands belief in God is simply not acceptable for everyone, and never will.

And Islam as the actual community of believers and their actions and hopes is just way too dogmatic, way too reliant on scripture for me to expect or even hope it to spread much further. For all its good intentions, it has repeatedly shown a complete lack of capability or even desire for dealing with some realities that it ought to accept and learn to deal with in an constructive way, such as atheism, homosexuality and non-traditional families.

Until and unless it decides to prove me wrong in that respect, I just can't see it as a very succesful religion, only a very widespread and hard-working one.

 

[9-10ths_Penguin]

Islam is Islam just like a science book is a science book.

I'm not sure I get your analogy. A science book is normally a collection of facts about science, not a guide to live your life. It can tell you that action A will result in effect B, but it won't tell you whether action A is ethical or effect B is a good outcome.

What does your analogy mean other than "tautologies are tautologies"? While I agree this is true, I also don't think it's really a helpful observation.

I am referring to gross interpretations of the Holy Quran and the Islamic message.

Does this mean anything more than "Muslim interpretations I don't like"?

For there to be one authoritative interpretation of the Quran, there has to be an authority to deem the "right" interpretation authoritative. Why should I accept this authority? What sort of authority is it?

Also, is Islam dependent on the Quran? Since many Muslims I know have said that all the Prophets have been Muslim (though maybe this is one of those "gross interpretations" you're talking about. Is it?) and all but one of them lived and died centuries before the Quran was put to paper, I'm not sure how this position could be considered consistent with larger Islam.

 

[nameless]

What are the main factors that makes non-muslims be hesitated about converting to Islam?

what need to leave the present religion? what makes islam unique?

 

[waitasec]

why should i?

 

[elmarna]

it is in a bias that paints a picture of what i can descibe best from someone when i was going to the middle east to get married.
" why do you want to be a part of a religion so backwards?"
"we no longer live in the stone age"
While it is far from the truth & not likely that they want to represent the line of angels in a good light- it is best to say they care just not able to call upon Islam in a wise way.
I am glad to be a part of islam
it has enriched my life!

 

[David M]

What are the main factors that makes non-muslims be hesitated about converting to Islam?

I: Propaganda of western media about the stereotype of Muslims with radical-fundamental attitudes?

II: Difficulty of avoiding most of the forbidden habits like drinking alcohol and ...?

Please share your thinking specially the ones who have converted to Islam or are willing to convert.

1. Lack of evidence that the god described in the Quran actually exists?
2. The unequal treatment of women in Islam (and the homophobia)?

I'd say those would be the 2 main factors.

 

[Jacksnyte]

What are the main factors that makes non-muslims be hesitated about converting to Islam?

I: Propaganda of western media about the stereotype of Muslims with radical-fundamental attitudes?

II: Difficulty of avoiding most of the forbidden habits like drinking alcohol and ...?

Please share your thinking specially the ones who have converted to Islam or are willing to convert.

I simply find the idea of worshiping what was originally an obscure tribal god that a small group of nomadic people decided was more important than the other gods of the pantheon that he was a member of (and who exibited some of the absolute worst traits to be found in humans, if the stories in the Old Testament are to be taken seriously) to be one of the roots of what has caused milennia of unnecessary suffering and cruelty in the world, and has held back humanity's development, putting us many centuries behind where we could have been by now.
Don't misunderstand me: I think that all religions have contributed some positive ideas and beauty to the world, but the willful ignorance and cruelty forced on the unwilling in the name of specifically these religions far outweighs the good things that can be found in them. This is why I can not accept Islam, or Judaism, or Christianity.

 

[Darkness]

Darkness has a point.

I first was introduced to the concept upon reading Eric Stetson, who writes articles on Christian Universalism, when I was fifteen. It was used as an example of how absurd it is to say that God will burn us in Hell if we do not believe.

I agree that religion is, as it has been historically cultural. However I do think there are other areas within a specific religion that attract people, not just cultural influences. However it would be unfair to say "from a Muslim perspective God favors a specific culture/race" when we know geographically majority of Muslims are not Arabs.

But I get your point nonetheless

That religion is a function of cultural is a generality, not an absolute fact. I did not mean to imply otherwise. The majority of people belong to a specific religion because it is the cultural meme they were exposed to. That little doubting part of my mind which still fears burning in hell is not afraid of the Jewish, Zoroastrian or Muslim God torturing me, but the Christian God I was exposed to by family and the community around me. To address the statement on race: I do not think I said the majority of Muslims are Arabs. I named three different ethnic/national groups as examples. I probably should have added Northern Africans as a sizeable portion of the Islamic flock. The map below shows a pattern of dispersal. If belief was equally open to all people on the planet, we would expect a more even distribution of believers all over the globe.

These sort of "atheists in foxholes" arguments always struck me as a rather dishonest approach. Our thinking processes aren't at their best when we're in a crisis; I know I've thought and done plenty of dumb things when I was in a panic situation or a low point in my life. I think it goes against common sense to argue that our thinking at these sorts of moments is a clearer indication of our "true" beliefs than our thinking the rest of the time.

I wholeheartedly assent. I could not have said it better myself.

 

[Antiochian]

I have a good friend who converted from Christianity to Islam. We've had some interesting conversations, and sadly she's been pretty much disowned by her family. I even got a copy of the Quran. Still, I don't think she really converted to anything, because the two religions are so similar.

Islam, like its older monotheistic sisters, has an unhealthy obsession with sexuality and gender.

Islam, like the other two big monos, thinks it's the only way to salvation.

Islam, like the others, relies heavily on written scriptures of questionable origin, which may or may not have relevance today.

I could never embrace Islam, although I respect others' right to do so (including my friend's), as long as they respect my freedom.

 

[Ilisrum]

I could never embrace Islam, although I respect others' right to do so (including my friend's), as long as they respect my freedom.

Exactly how I feel, my friend. I can never put anybody down for believing in something. However, it's another thing altogether when somebody tries pushing their beliefs on me.

I'll remain happily agnostic, thank you!

 

[Amill]

I'm not gonna go into all the reasons why I don't believe in any religion, but one big thing that sticks out to me about Islam is the amount of times hell or punishment for unbelievers is discussed. I find hell to be a ridiculous idea, so the more times I see it the more I think that people were just using the concept to scare people and to make people feel better about any evils done upon themselves. I find the idea of hell so preposterous that there's no way I could view the Quran as inspired by a God.

 

[England my lionheart]

What are the benefits of converting to Islam,looking around the Islamic world it would seem there are none,in fact it seems worse for its followers apart from those who live in the west.

 

[Caladan]

I think you can get an indication from many of the posts, that it is a matter of culture and society. the Jews practice Judaism, the people in Jordan practice Sunni Islam, Europeans practice Christianity.
you cannot alter social orders and expect people to shift to the cultural traits of other communities, to their system of laws, and the social challenges of people who live in the middle east, or perhaps the Indian sub continent.
Islam is more than just a religion, it is a religion which is practiced by people who have their own distinct cultural traits, the Pakistanis, the Arabs, the South East Asians, and other notable societies.
In effect Jasem, what you are asking from people, is to take on your challenges of culture or nation.

 

[Flankerl]

Islam, like the other two big monos, thinks it's the only way to salvation.

Christianity and sikhism? (then again i dont believe that its a monotheistic religion)

If you talk about judaism(which is no major religion), no judaism is not the only way to "salvation". I put salvation in quotation marks because its different than in islam and christianity.

 

[tumbleweed41]

For the same reason I am not a Christian, Jew, Sikh, Baha'i, Zoroastrian etc...

I find the revealed religious of man to be unreasonable and dogmatic.

 

[AmbiguousGuy]

What are the main factors that makes non-muslims be hesitated about converting to Islam?

I have a need to think freely.

But I couldn't think freely if I believed that some particular man had a special pipeline to God.

 

[Jordan Robert Wilson]

I have a need to think freely.

Agreed.
In my opinion, religion simply closes and limits the mind. It definitely halts progress.

 

[839311]

What are the main factors that makes non-muslims be hesitated about converting to Islam?

1. Muhammad was a warlord. This almost singlehandedly disqualifies him. I would expect a person of god to be the peaceful type.
2. His rules are severly degrading to women, such as the law where in court a womans word is worth half that of a man.
3. Muhammad was a pedophile, marrying and having sex with a child.
4. Islam states that half of humanity is going to hell. This is a ridiculous idea, being inherited from a twisted Christianity. No sober-minded person could ever accept such a pathetic, wicked idea as true.
5. The bible is believed to be valid. The bible itself is a completely absurd set of documents which are clearly man-made, just like the Koran.
6. The revelations which Muhammad supposedly received, and that he is supposedly the last prophet, fall short of what one would expect as the last message to humanity. Where is information about genetics? Or about the big bang? Or evolution?
7. A God that is obsessed with worship is another ridiculous idea. Why would anyone want to be worshipped at all, let alone as much as the Abrahamic God demands.
8. How could we think that an all-powerful god would communicate with humans through individuals like Muhammad? God would know that sober-minded people couldn't possibly accept the testimony of, say, Buddha, over the testimony of countless other 'prophets'? If God existed, he wouldn't make such an obvious, foolish error. He would make sure that his message was clear and accepted as valid by everyone.
9. In Islam, people can have up to 4 wives. Muhammad had a lot more than this, another indication that he was in it for power, wealth and luxury, deceiving the masses with lies.

Just another religion, nothing special to talk about. However, the damage that Islam has done to humanity and continues to do is extreme. It will be a good day when no one believes this nonsense anymore, and the religion fades into mythology to join the countless other religions which people don't believe in anymore.