Thirty-fifth in a series
These next articles cover a topic most of us have some familiarity with—jihad. There is misinformation about this topic, so we are going to focus on only a few significant items. Most things we do have both a physical, or natural, aspect and a spiritual one. This topic is no different. This article addresses the natural side. The next, the spiritual one.
What Does Jihad Mean?
According to Pete Seda, “the word jihad literally means struggle.”[1] This is true, but what really matters is what does this word mean within the context of the Qur’an? What kind of struggle? Below are just a few verses from it and Ibn Ishaq’s sirat. These articles will continue citing traditional sources as those have shaped Islam today. As before, quotes from Pickthall’s meaning of the Qur’an are preceded by an ‘S’.
“Then, when the sacred months have passed, slay the idolaters [non-believers] wherever ye find them, and take them (captive), and besiege them, and prepare for them each ambush. But if they repent and establish worship and pay the poor-due, then leave their way free. Lo! Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.” (S9.5)[2]
“Fight in the way of Allah, and know that Allah is Hearer, Knower.” (S2.244)
“As for those who disbelieve I shall chastise them with a heavy chastisement in the world and the Hereafter; and they will have no helpers.” (S 3.56)
“We shall cast terror into the hearts of those who disbelieve because they ascribe unto Allah partners, for which no warrant hath been revealed. Their habitation is the Fire, and hapless the abode of the wrong-doers.” (S3.151)
“The only reward of those who make war upon Allah and His messenger and strive after corruption in the land will be that they will be killed or crucified, or have their hands and feet on alternate sides cut off, or will be expelled out of the land. Such will be their degradation in the world, and in the Hereafter theirs will be an awful doom.” (S5.033)
“God said, ‘It is not for any prophet (before thee) to take prisoners from his enemies until he has made slaughter in the earth.’ … God desires the next world, i.e., their killing them to manifest the religion which He wishes to manifest and by which the next world may be attained.”[3] (484)
“Fight everyone in the way of God and kill those who disbelieve in God.” (992)
In the sirat passages, the word God refers to Allah. None of the verses above have anything to do with a personal struggle, nor do most of the other verses about this topic within the Qur’an. None of the verses above are constrained to a particular time or place either. They refer to actions in the natural world that are open-ended, and to be carried out until the task of all submitting to Islam is complete.
Are There Different Kinds of Jihad?
Some people do not realize jihad has several different forms. Besides jihad of the sword, with which we are most familiar; there are several non-violent types including jihad of the mind (teaching), pen(writing), tongue (speaking), piety (charitable acts), and wealth. Islam requires its followers advance it, by peaceful means if possible or violent means if not. Examples of the non-violent forms includes the publication of books and articles favorable to Islam (such as Pete Seda’s Islam Is …), the creation of Middle Eastern studies chairs at colleges and universities, the establishment of organizations supporting Islam such as the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), and the funding of mosques and the other items just mentioned by Islamic funding. More recent within America have been the parades and demonstrations demanding the recognition of Islam’s ideological structures. And the capitulation by some state and local government units to those demands.
These are the fulfillment of the Muslim Brotherhood’s civilization jihad described in their Explanatory Memorandum[4] incorporated into the Holy Land Foundation trial.
What Does Peace Mean?
We previously mentioned instances where the same word means something different in Eastern and Western cultures. We’ll add another word to that list—peace. In the West, the idea of peace is characterized by the following quote from Augustine: “Peace is the end sought for by war. For every man seeks peace by waging war, but no man seeks war by making peace.”[5] He goes on to say even those intentionally interrupting the peace do not hate it, but only want a peace suiting them better.
The above assumes peace is man’s natural state. Peace happens when a people is turned toward God as they obey His divine law: to love God and our fellow man. One’s actions should generally be charitable and focused on self-sacrifice. When man turns away from God and toward himself, he is more likely to harm others through his actions. He turns from self-sacrifice to self-interest: “For he sees that peace cannot be maintained unless all the members of the same domestic circle be subject to one head, such as he himself is in his own house.”[6] Man turns from virtue to vice in order to enforce his will on others. This last is a driver of the State Religion governance model, on which Rome and other ancient civilizations were based.
The Second View of Peace
The Arabian Peninsula’s environment was very different in some respects. It was harsh and unforgiving. Life was often lived on the edge as there frequently was not enough for everyone. Raiding was a century’s old means of obtaining what you needed but did not have. Alliances were struck where beneficial, but subject to change as needs changed. Things could and did change rapidly.
Into the sixth century, unlike the rest of the known world, Arabia had no central ruling authority. Instead, tribal rule was exercised, with the leader responsible for those in his clan or tribe. A code of conduct called muruwa existed, and represented the Arabic idea of manliness and honor. This honor was maintained or increased based upon the results of one’s actions, whether they brought prestige or increased a tribe’s wealth. It was the outcome that mattered. Killing another was okay if it bettered a tribe’s position or performed in retaliation to a dishonorable act.
In such an environment, conflict was the norm, and peace the interlude between conflicts. This notion fits the kind of submission required by Islam. Peace is obtained only after the struggle ceases, when there is submission. I am not saying one culture is better than the other, or that one is right and the other wrong, but merely that in some ways the cultures were very different and in this respect the opposite of each other. This is the Arabic culture incorporated into Islam. This is seen by the integration of Islam’s teachings into the Arab Sunna existing before Muhammad,[7] in addition to other cultural carry-overs such as polygamy, slavery, and child weddings.
Relationship to Governance Ideas
The above differences concerning the notion of peace have societal implications, especially for governance and sovereignty. The first view of peace is part of the Biblical Principles model; the second the State Religion model. We’ve seen the principles underlying these two models cannot coexist—they are mutually exclusive.[8] The Islamic governance model, the third model, is derived from the State Religion model. The State Religion model is also the source of the Rights of Man governance model. This last governance model represents today’s democracies and the ideologies of fascism, socialism, and communism. Think this is not true? Do we now have a New York City mayor who calls himself both an Islamist and a communist?
The last three model’s destinations differ little; just the path getting there is somewhat different. A path marked with chaos and endless forever wars. This is one reason America’s Founders chose a different path.
Islamic Jihad Falsehoods
This section presents some additional statements from Islam Is … about jihad, and some facts that cannot be explained away when considering Islam’s history.
Fight When Attacked
“The Qur’an makes it clear that it is permissible for people to fight back against those who attack them. God says, ‘Fight in the cause of God those who fight you, but do not transgress limits; for God loves not transgressors.’”[9] (S 2.190)
It is permissible to attack another when attacked. Tradition says, when Muhammad died in 632, he had placed almost all the Arabian Peninsula under his control. Yet, within 100 years’ time the caliphate had expanded its territory from the Arabian Peninsula to southern France in the West and modern India in the East. This area is as much as Rome commanded at the height of its power, but took Rome almost five centuries to acquire. Islam in the West was only turned back at the Battle of Tours under Charles ‘The Hammer’ Martel in 732. We saw earlier, Islam’s economy required territorial expansion to work. The non-Islamic kingdoms were the ones fighting a defensive war against Islamic aggression, and in response to that aggression and the treatment of non-Muslims that the Crusades resulted. (Click here for more about Islam’s early history.)
Fight Against Oppression and Repression
“It is permissible to fight against oppression and persecution. This does not apply only to Islam and Muslims, because everyone has the right to worship God. ‘To those against whom war is made, permission is given [to fight] because they are wronged and verily God is Most Powerful for their aid.’”[10] (S22.39)
This statement indicates one is permitted to fight when they are not allowed to worship God. However, Islam only recognizes its requirements as worshiping God. Early Islamic rule was in many ways no different from the surrounding kingdoms it encountered. What is unusual is the extent to which those ideas were carried out, and the length of time over which they were executed. Islam found and incorporated much of its law and governance structures from the Byzantines and Persians. Under the Abbasid Dynasty, Islamic governance structures hardened into what we know today. (Click here to read the first of three articles about the Abbasid Dynasty).
Defend Others of Faith
“‘To those against whom war is made, permission is given [to fight] because they are wronged and verily God is Most powerful for their aid. [They are] those who have been expelled from their homes in defiance of right [for no cause] except that they say, ‘Our Lord is God.’ If God did not check one set of people by means of another, there would surely have been pulled down monasteries, churches, synagogues, and mosques, in which the name of God is commemorated in abundant measure.’ [S 22.39-40] This clearly means that Muslims must fight to protect and defend people of other faiths if they are in areas where the Muslims have effective power. The life, honor, and property of all people are considered sacred whether they are Muslim or not.”[11]
This is a startling claim, as the Abbasid Dynasty formalized dhimmitude, let alone the religious structures destroyed during the caliphate’s growth, and requests for structural repairs forbidden. Dhimmis are the non-Islamic peoples living in land under Islamic control. Those not following Islam were the property of the state (fay). They had almost no rights. They were only allowed to stay at the pleasure of the Islamic governing authorities, required to pay extremely harsh taxes, and reduced to slave labor cultivating the land. Passports were created during this era, and required for the non-Islamic population to leave their area. Tattoos were used to identify the kingdom and city to which a dhimmi belonged. Dhimmis were to be humiliated when paying taxes. While there were writings limiting this practice, history shows they were very seldom enforced. (Click here for more information on dhimmitude.)
No Such Thing as Holy War
“There is no such thing as ‘holy war’ in Islam or in the Qur’an.”[12]
In the overwhelming number of instances where the word is used within the Qur’an, jihad refers to war. Tradition says, Muhammad created the Constitution of Medina soon after leaving Mecca. This is one of his first acts after arriving at Medina. It is interesting to note that Islam does not start its calendar from when Muhammad received his first revelation in 610, but instead when he migrated to Medina in 622, shortly before this document was created. Part of this document says the following.
“The Jews shall contribute to the cost of war so long as they are fighting alongside the believers. The Jews of the B. ‘Auf are one community with the believers (the Jews have their religion and the Muslims have theirs) … The contracting parties are bound to help one another against any attack on Yathrib. If they are called to make peace and maintain it they must do so; and if they make a similar demand on the Muslims it must be carried out except in the case of holy war.”[13] (344)
The Truth About Jihad
Like it or not, believe it or not, we are in an ideological war. We did not ask for it, nor did we start it. It is a war declared upon us simply because of what we believe. It has been going on for almost 1,400 years.
All wars have casualties. No one knows exactly how many have died in this one, but a few have attempted to estimate the number using both Islamic and non-Islamic source documents. These estimates put the numbers in the hundreds of millions. One source puts the estimate at about 270 million, or about 200,000/year.[14] These figures include Christians from all sects, Jews, Zoroastrians, Buddhists, Hindus, Llamaists, Gnostics, and pagans. In short, anyone not following Islam.
In the last decade alone (from 2016) it is estimated that 900,000 Christians died. The figures for their deaths by Islam are 30,000 in 2016 and 115,00 in 2015—and these numbers represent only Christian deaths. In attempting to update these numbers for this article, there is very little new information available.[15] What does appear evident is the presence of both secular government and Islamic persecution against Christians. A merging of the three governance models based upon the State Religion model ideology? We will see.
Footnotes;
[1] Seda, Pete, Islam Is …, p. 13, 2002.
[2] All Qur’an verses are from Pickthall, M. M., The Meaning of the Glorious Qur’an, amana publishing, 1999.
[3] Guillaume, A., The Life of Muhammad: A Translation of Ibn Ishaq’s Sirat Rasul Allah, pp. 326-7 and p. 672, Oxford University Press, 2006. The reference is to the paragraph number appearing alongside the text.
[4] An Explanatory Memorandum: On the General Strategic Goal for the Group In North America, 5/22/1991, p. 4, https://www.investigativeproject.org/document/20-an-explanatory-memorandum-on-the-general, accessed July, 2026.
[5] Schaff, Philip, Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 2, Augustin: City of God, Christian Doctrine, p. 407, Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, Book XIX, Chapter XII.
[6] Ibid, p. 408.
[7] Goldziher, Ignaz, Introduction to Islamic Theology and Law, p. 231, Princeton University Press, 1981.
[8] Wolf, Dan, Governance Model Principles, Virginia Christian Alliance, https://vachristian.org/governance-model-principles/ , May 28, 2026. Accessed, July, 2026.
[9] Seda, Pete, Islam Is …, p. 13, 2002.
[10] Ibid.
[11] Ibid.
[12] Ibid.
[13] Guillaume, A., The Life of Muhammad: A Translation of Ibn Ishaq’s Sirat Rasul Allah, Oxford University Press, 2006.
[14] There are several sites which contain additional information on this topic. One is Bill Warner’s Political Islam site at https://www.politicalislam.com/tears-of-jihad/ . Accessed November, 2016.
[15] One site having some information is Global Christian Relief, Christian Persecution by the Numbers: 2026 Global Trends, https://globalchristianrelief.org/stories/christian-persecution-statistics/ , May 26, 2026. Accessed July, 2026.
