In part of Leslie's last blog entry she defended the people of Islam & I completely agree. No one religion has a monopoly on the good or bad people of the earth. Since I too have received slanderous e-mail, I write the following:Stereotyping Muslims gets to me on a very personal level. My mother moved to Baghdad (Iraq) when she was 7-years-old because my grandfather was sent by the US Government to help the people of the Middle East with agriculture techniques. They also lived in Kabul (Afghanistan), Lahore (Pakistan), & Tehran (Iran)... my mother did not return to the United States until she was 18-years-old & began college. While my mother grew up "abroad" she had the opportunity to meet many individuals who were not of her Christian faith. Most of her friends were Muslims and some of the most kind people she has ever met. When she asked her minister where her Muslim peers & their families would go after they died, she was told they would be sent to hell. My dear mother did not believe that a loving God sent Jesus to save the world and then only let a very small percentage of the Earth's population take advantage of His Atonement. As she left home (Lahore) for college in America, she searched for a religion that testified of God's love for ALL men. As a result of her diligent & faithful quest, she joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and my life has been forever blessed because she did.
I grabbed a section of an article from our Church magazine, the Ensign, to clarify:
At the great day of judgment, what will happen to the good people of this earth?
It is overly simplistic to think that all who are members of the Lord’s church by that time will go to “heaven” while those who do not belong to the Church will go to “hell.” The Lord promises that all people will be judged and receive degrees of glory according to their works, the desires of their hearts, and their faith. In referring to the afterlife, the Savior taught that our Father’s house contains many mansions and that there are three degrees of glory—celestial, terrestrial, and telestial. (See John 14:2–3; 1 Cor. 15:41; D&C 76:96–98.) Even the lowest degree of glory, the telestial kingdom, “surpasses all understanding.” (D&C 76:89.)
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Truly the love of God and Jesus Christ is beyond comprehension. Who else would be so magnanimous, patient, and comprehensive in aid and judgment? The plan of salvation is sweeping: it extends to every person who has lived, who is living now, or who will live on this earth. It denies no one because of station or situation and gives everyone full opportunity for the greatest riches of God’s kingdom. It includes nonbelievers and believers, as well as those who have never heard of Jesus Christ. It manifests itself plainly to man in ways that are totally good. As such, it is a reflection of the deep love that God has for us.
As Nephi said: The Lord “doeth that which is good among the children of men; and he doeth nothing save it be plain unto the children of men; and he inviteth them all to come unto him and partake of his goodness; and he denieth none that come unto him, black and white, bond and free, male and female; and he remembereth the heathen; and all are alike unto God, both Jew and Gentile.” (2 Ne. 26:33.)
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I feel strongly about this particular point because of a picture I saw in a magazine. It was a photo essay about troops who are serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. And one picture at the tail end of this photo essay was of a mother in Arlington Cemetery, and she had her head on the headstone of her son's grave. And as the picture focused in, you could see the writing on the headstone. And it gave his awards--Purple Heart, Bronze Star--showed that he died in Iraq, gave his date of birth, date of death. He was 20 years old. And then, at the very top of the headstone, it didn't have a Christian cross, it didn't have the Star of David, it had crescent and a star of the Islamic faith. And his name was Kareem Rashad Sultan Khan, and he was an American. He was born in New Jersey. He was 14 years old at the time of 9/11, and he waited until he can go serve his country, and he gave his life. Now, we have got to stop polarizing ourself in this way.