Dear Hildebrand:

Sorry for the delay in answering. I have been behind in my work lately.

Mohammed's alleged contact with an angel was not of God. It is most likely that Mohammed's account of this was a lie to begin with, but if he did really have contact with an "angel" it was a demon and not an angel of God. How do I know this? Because an Angel of God would not inspire Muhammad to develop a religion at all, let alone a religion that is contrary to Christ and His Church. Thus, by definiton this "angel" was a demon.

Although we cannot know Mohammed's true motives, it appears that his development of Islam was motivated not by religious fervor or inspiration but by a desire to unite the bickering Bedouins and by the pursuit of politics, power, and wealth. (much the same motivations for the Protestant Revolution ala Luther and the European princes).

Muhammad borrowed from the ancient Jewish religion and added a dash of Catholicism to come up with a religion that could serve his purposes. Unfortunately, the purposes of Islam were not restricted to uniting the Arab Bedouins. From the beginning Islam had a desire to conquer other nations and peoples in the name of "Allah" in order to bring their "faith" to the world and thereby eradicate infidels (all other faiths). The purpose of the Crusades were to protect Jerusalem and Europe from marauding Muslims bent on conquest. The reason for the harshness of the Spanish Inquisition conducted by the royals Ferdinand and Isabella (and NOT endorsed by the Church) was anger over the conquest of the Muslims over Spain (the consequences which can still be seen today in the architecture and cultural influences). Islam has been a menace and threat to other nations and peoples since its beginning and still is today. This is not some prejudiced opinion, but a historical fact.

While there are certainly individual Muslims who are peaceful people and even tolerant of other faiths, the worldview of Islam is not tolerant and is violent toward the "infidel." Islam also appears to tolerate hideous cultural practices such as female circumcision and "honor" killings. Such things are not even remotely of God.

The worldview of Islam allows for violence, it allows for "conversion by the sword" and the death of "infidels." Even though some Muslims may not believe or practice that, Islam as a system of thought and worldview allows for it.

This is not true in Christianity. Some people will point to violence done in the name of the Church. There has been indeed some violence in Church history. The difference, however, is that such inappropriate violence is NOT part of the Christian worldview. It is a sin. While there were some laymen, priests, bishops, and even Popes who committed inappropriate violence and other sinful acts, these actions were not part of the Christian worldview -- they were violations of the Christian worldview -- they were sins.

In Islam, such acts of violence are allowed in their worldview and in some cases even rewarded.

That is a major difference between us. Islam allows for the violence and some practice it and some do not. Christianity does not allow for the violence, but some sin and do it anyway -- and when they do it is a VIOLATION, a SIN, that is not approved or supported by the Christian worldview.

One might point to the Old Testament "eye for an eye" mentality and say that this is no different that what Islam does. It is true that this Old Testament economy was a concept borrowed from the ancient Jews by Islam but it was borrowed without understanding. For Islam God is an impersonal God, a vengeful God and thus punishment is not "discipline" (which means "to teach") but a revenge. Thus, if someone steals, cut off their hand as revenge for the stealing.

What Islam failed to understand about the Mosaic Law concerning things like an "eye for an eye" is that law was not an appeal to revenge at all. The "eye for an eye" law was enacted to moderate revenge, to limit and control it.

In those days revenge was a common part of the worldview of the culture. It was a major problem because people would escalate their revenge into blood feuds.  If you cut off my arm, I will cut off your arm and pluck your eye out. Then you will pluck my eye and cut off my leg. Then I will cut off your leg and your other arm... and on it goes. Thus, Moses tried to stave off this escalation by making it law that if someone takes your chicken all you can do is take one of his chickens and not the whole flock. If someone takes your eye, you can take his eye but nothing more.

The law was not motivated by revenge but was a law that introduced a rudimentary form of justice and equality under the law for the first time.

I don't think Islam understands any of this that I can see. It focuses on revenge. This is not of God, at least not of the God of Abraham.

The bottomline is that while Islam looks to the God of Abraham and gives Him homage and worship, it has distorted the teachings of the God of Abraham to a point that is nearly unrecognizable. In this sense Islam is a false religion of the God of Abraham. Essentially, Islam is to the Jewish religion what Mormons are to the Christian religion. Both are false religions who use the trappings and some language of the genuine religions but go into tangents that depart of the truth of the original. The Jewish religion and the Christian Religion are genuine religions of the God of Abraham. Islam is not just as Mormons are not Christian.

The similarities between Mormons and Islam is striking. Both claim a post-Christ prophet, both claim a post-apostolic Revelation, both claim an "angel" gave them that Revelation, both have dubious stories of that transmission, both depart from the teachings of the God they say they believe in, both have developed bizarre doctrines.

Now with all that said, the fact is that Islam is an established religion in our world, with significant numbers of adherents, and with serious political, social, and religious ramifications. They cannot be ignored or dismissed.

Nevertheless, Christ commanded us to preach the gospel to all men, even to our enemies, even to those who disagree with us, even to people of other religions. That commission is carried out in many ways -- through literal preaching on the street-corners, through Bible studies and education, through meeting social needs to the poor, hungry, naked, homeless, and sick, and through dialog.

The Church dialogs with Islam because we love them as God's children, as cousins in faith of the same God (albeit their faith is distorted), and because Christ commands it.

To dialog (not debate or argue) with Islam or any other religious body, or any person, is not to agree with them or to endorse them. It is to dialog with them in hopes that they will see Christ in us and be inspired. This is the calling of Christ and the mission of the Church.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church states:

849 The missionary mandate. "Having been divinely sent to the nations that she might be 'the universal sacrament of salvation,' the Church, in obedience to the command of her founder and because it is demanded by her own essential universality, strives to preach the Gospel to all men": "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and Lo, I am with you always, until the close of the age."

850 The origin and purpose of mission. The Lord's missionary mandate is ultimately grounded in the eternal love of the Most Holy Trinity: "The Church on earth is by her nature missionary since, according to the plan of the Father, she has as her origin the mission of the Son and the Holy Spirit." The ultimate purpose of mission is none other than to make men share in the communion between the Father and the Son in their Spirit of love.

856 The missionary task implies a respectful dialogue with those who do not yet accept the Gospel. Believers can profit from this dialogue by learning to appreciate better "those elements of truth and grace which are found among peoples, and which are, as it were, a secret presence of God." They proclaim the Good News to those who do not know it, in order to consolidate, complete, and raise up the truth and the goodness that God has distributed among men and nations, and to purify them from error and evil "for the glory of God, the confusion of the demon, and the happiness of man."

God bless,
Bro. Ignatius Mary