Muslims/Followers of Islam
Out of context: Reply #254
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- KuzIV0
actually that is a complete falsehood flagellum. The islamic conquests of the 6th century were territorial conquests and not about conversion.
The early Suras of the Quran refer to the tribal struggles of the tribe Mohammed belonged to (the Quresh) and those who had expelled them from Mecca. The reference to the infidels, in its historical context, refers to the struggle of the new tribe of Muslims to win back the city of Mecca from what they referred to as infidels (the ones who had expelled them).
The early Muslim Caliphs (in particular the Abbasid dynasty of 700-800 AD) set themselves up as a ruling class and, compared to Chrisitan Europe, showed exemplary respect to the Christians and Jews (though later dynasties were less pleasant).. During the first few hundred years of Islam, Muslims continued to be a minority in the Middle East and were content to be so. In fact, conversion to Islam was dicouraged because the Caliphs would then lose an important source of tax revenue.
I always think it cute when Christians bring up Islam's treatment of minority faiths. A Monty Python sketch always comes to mind
"no one ever expects the Spanish inquisition!"