Is Islam A Death Cult?

[The Valkyrie]

Many religions are death cults.

Billions spend their entire lives thinking about and preparing for an afterlife which, likely, does not exist.

[Ferrocyanide]

In the Quran and hadith, martyrs are first and foremost those who have died in jihad, “fighting in the path of God,” those who have perished violently in battle.

Certainly, death in battle is not the only way to achieve martyrdom in Islam. Those who die unjustly or whose lives are truncated by some act of God are martyrs as well. Someone who is killed for their money, someone who drowns, someone who dies building a mosque or in a structural collapse, a woman who dies in childbirth, the victims of a plague, someone who is killed defending their family, someone who is killed for speaking truth to an unjust ruler, who dies in prison or who stands alone for truth in corrupted times; even (according to one hadith) someone who falls in love and represses their desire with fatal consequences—all these are martyrs.

Source: (https://tinyurl.com/3xtv3b39)

In the article he goes on to take a very erudite and western interpretation of the Quran and the meaning of Duty.

"What if Muslims restored this idea of ‘bearing witness’ to the word martyrdom? What if we thought of martyrdom as bearing witness by being willing to die in the name of that God Who tells us that saving one life is like saving all of humanity, that standing up to injustice is the highest act of faith, that feeding the stranger and the orphan, and sheltering the wayfarer are the solemn duties of every individual? The Quran (41:33) tells us, “What better word is there than calling out to God, doing a good deed and saying, Indeed I am one of those who submits to God.”"

It's always a good idea to go over definitions:
What's a death cult?

Do you mean a religion/cult that encourages members to go to battle when some leader decides to go to battle, because a neighboring country has resources, is not part of the islamic faith, or maybe they want to settle a justice related issue outside of the courthouse?
And at the same time, the religion/cult tells the followers not to worry about dying bc the god will give them benefits in the afterlife (people will remember him as a martyr, which is a badge of honor)?

"What if Muslims restored this idea of ‘bearing witness’ to the word martyrdom?

Bearing witness to a word? What does that even mean?

[Goosebump]

Source: (https://tinyurl.com/3xtv3b39)

It's always a good idea to go over definitions:
What's a death cult?

Do you mean a religion/cult that encourages members to go to battle when some leader decides to go to battle, because a neighboring country has resources, is not part of the islamic faith, or maybe they want to settle a justice related issue outside of the courthouse?
And at the same time, the religion/cult tells the followers not to worry about dying bc the god will give them benefits in the afterlife (people will remember him as a martyr, which is a badge of honor)?

"What if Muslims restored this idea of ‘bearing witness’ to the word martyrdom?

Bearing witness to a word? What does that even mean?

It looks like you defined Death Cult for yourself. I don't see anybody arguing with it. If you really read that as "bearing witness to a word" than your a kind of dumb. It's always a good idea to check the source before you comment on selective quotes pulled from it. Way to post a nothing post that just waisted everybody's time reading your post and now this post.

[Rev. Rye]

It's always a good idea to go over definitions:
What's a death cult?

Do you mean a religion/cult that encourages members to go to battle when some leader decides to go to battle, because a neighboring country has resources, is not part of the islamic faith, or maybe they want to settle a justice related issue outside of the courthouse?
And at the same time, the religion/cult tells the followers not to worry about dying bc the god will give them benefits in the afterlife (people will remember him as a martyr, which is a badge of honor)?



Bearing witness to a word? What does that even mean?

It looks like you defined Death Cult for yourself. I don't see anybody arguing with it. If you really read that as "bearing witness to a word" than your a kind of dumb. It's always a good idea to check the source before you comment on selective quotes pulled from it. Way to post a nothing post that just waisted everybody's time reading your post and now this post.

If that's your definition, well, most every major religious nation that has ever gone to war is a death cult. This would include, honestly, most nations in Europe up until 1945, plus Russia today.

For a better look at what might constitute a cult, check out Steven Hassan's BITE model. When applying the criteria, remember: Islam isn't necessarily just practiced one way. Some Muslim groups are heavily authoritarian and will likely check most of the boxes, and some will probably lie at a baseline that's common for most major world religions.

[WinterHold]

In the Quran and hadith, martyrs are first and foremost those who have died in jihad, “fighting in the path of God,” those who have perished violently in battle.

Certainly, death in battle is not the only way to achieve martyrdom in Islam. Those who die unjustly or whose lives are truncated by some act of God are martyrs as well. Someone who is killed for their money, someone who drowns, someone who dies building a mosque or in a structural collapse, a woman who dies in childbirth, the victims of a plague, someone who is killed defending their family, someone who is killed for speaking truth to an unjust ruler, who dies in prison or who stands alone for truth in corrupted times; even (according to one hadith) someone who falls in love and represses their desire with fatal consequences—all these are martyrs.

Source: (https://tinyurl.com/3xtv3b39)

In the article he goes on to take a very erudite and western interpretation of the Quran and the meaning of Duty.

"What if Muslims restored this idea of ‘bearing witness’ to the word martyrdom? What if we thought of martyrdom as bearing witness by being willing to die in the name of that God Who tells us that saving one life is like saving all of humanity, that standing up to injustice is the highest act of faith, that feeding the stranger and the orphan, and sheltering the wayfarer are the solemn duties of every individual? The Quran (41:33) tells us, “What better word is there than calling out to God, doing a good deed and saying, Indeed I am one of those who submits to God.”"

Dying for the cause of God is the highest honour a Muslim can get.
The question is: what ranks up as a death in "God's cause"?

Martyrdom = death in battle for God, death while sacrificing for God.


So if God despises your act (like causing the death of innocents -even innocent non-believers-, causing corruption on the land...etcetera)  you can't claim it is death for God. God might throw you in hell instead for the sin you caused.

BTW, all countries claim they have the true "meaning of martyrdom". I know lots of Americans who threw themselves in the crematoria of Iraq and Afghanistan to be "martyrs for the USA".

[The Grand Nudger]

No you don't, you don't know a single one, lol. Murricans aren't interested in martyring ourselves. Another failed tq.

[WinterHold]

No you don't, you don't know of a single one, lol.  Murricans aren't interested in martyring ourselves.  Another failed tq.

Interested in cash + benefits of being in the army you mean?
Mercenaries in other words ?

[Fireball]

When do you declare unilateral victory over your vanquished foes in these forums?

It's all electrons jiggling on wires, and the occasional fiber optic connection to any "friend" or "foe", around here. What do you consider as "vanquished", and who are your "foes"?

[The Grand Nudger]

I wish I had me some of that mercenary money. Unfortunately, harvesting the salty tears of islamists like yourself just isn't all that lucrative.

[WinterHold]

I wish I had me some of that mercenary money.

War economy institutions and employees are destined to fail in front of an army fighting for a "cause".
Money is finite unlike "an idea"; compare early Muslims that fought for the idea of God to the "Roman soldiers" or "Persian soldiers" who were fighting for money alone.

Money is finite and institutions that promise it will stop giving it once the contract is over. That's the catch.

BTW don't think that Islamist terrorists are out of the war economy circle: they too fight for cash.