Gunpoint Conversions and Martyrdom

La Shawn Barber’s Corner blogged Embrace Islam or die. That would be a simple choice for me, though not an easy one if I had a gun to my head. (Isn’t it strange that Centanni, who said he “converted” only because he had a gun to his head, felt the need to be apologetically politically correct by expressing the “highest respect for Islam”? Unbelievable on so many levels.)

Thanks to the blessing of living in a free and civilized country (for the time being), Christians in America likely won’t face deny-Christ-or-die scenarios. Aside from the usual attempts to shunt our beliefs from the public sphere at best, and the possibility of having Bible-based preaching labeled as hate speech at worst, Christians in America have it relatively easy compared to the rest of the world....

Christians, what would you do if some maniac held a gun to your head and asked you to deny Christ or die? Would you deny the Savior?... [Clarification: If I gave the impression that I thought I would “lose” my salvation if I denied Christ, I certainly didn’t intend to, though the previous sentence may read that way. The Bible teaches that once Christ forgives us, we’re always forgiven. Once saved, always saved. I don’t have to work to “keep” my salvation. Yes, even if I denied Christ, God forbid it, he’s still my Savior.]

Would I want to live with the shame of not trusting him and denying him for the sake of living in this fallen world?

Why does it have to come down to a decision to deny Christ, and live, or die as a martyr? There is a third alternative, lead your captors to Christ. These guys are not theological geniuses. If you have a little knowledge of the Koran, paraticularly the more peaceful verses in the early Suras, you can ask them to explain them to you. Then ask if they believe that everything in the Koran is the absolute truth. You know that they are going to say of course it is.

Do they believe Surat al-Baqara, 136 (Qur'an 2:136) which says Say ye: "We believe in Allah, and the revelation given to us, and to Abraham, Isma'il, Isaac, Jacob, and the Tribes, and that given to Moses and Jesus, and that given to (all) prophets from their Lord: We make no difference between one and another of them

Do they believe Surat aal-E-Imran, 3 (Qur'an 3:3) which says It is He Who sent down to thee (step by step), in truth, the Book, confirming what went before it; and He sent down the Law (of Moses) and the Gospel (of Jesus) before this, as a guide to mankind, and He sent down the criterion (of judgment between right and wrong).

Do they believe Surat aal-E-Imran, 45 (Qur'an 3:45) which says Behold! the angels said: "O Mary! Allah giveth thee glad tidings of a Word from Him: his name will be Christ Jesus, the son of Mary, held in honour in this world and the Hereafter and of (the company of) those nearest to Allah;

If they believe what the Koran says in these verses, then explain to them some of the other things that Christ said and did, and see if you can lead them to Christ. You may still get shot, but can you think of a better way to go?

Michelle Malkin blogged But remember: "There is no compulsion" in the Koran and Islam is a "Religion of Peace."

The Anchoress blogged LaShawn observes the weirdness of our time: that one might be forcibly converted and still say, “I learned a lot of good things about Islam…” from the very Islamofascists who taught it to him at gunpoint.

It is easy to say I would not be so confused were my head under the sword the terrorists would like to hold over me (and you). I think I would make the right choice, I believe I would de-capitate before I’d capitulate. But if they held the sword over my one of my son’s necks, then what?

This war is either going to be won, in a long hard slog, or it’s going to be lost. It’s as simple as that. I’m voting for winning it. The alternative is unappealing.

Steve Janke blogged Hey, guns were pointed, so what are you going to do? No one would hold it against them, not even Centanni's family priest, assuming he had one. But what if, for argument's sake, Steve Centanni or Olaf Wiig refused to convert? What if, like Saint Edmund, they defied their captors' demands? What if, like Saint Edmund, they were beheaded? In days past, such a person would be applauded for his dedication to his faith. What would happen today? Would they be ridiculed for suffering death rather than deny their faith? If this turns out not be an isolated incident, but the beginning of a new element in kidnappings by Islamic terrorists, we might yet find out. Kidnap enough Westerners, and eventually you'll find the guy who either has incredible devotion to his faith, or develops that devotion the moment the gun is pointed at his head. It'll be a test of faith for him, and for the rest of us, a test in understanding what faith means.

Daniel Freedman blogged The bad news is that Islam will soon be able to enforce submission-conversion at the point of a nuke. The good news is that any religion that needs to do that is, by definition, a weak one.