...   
      
    BK>>  Ah, you are ahead of the pack on that last.   
      
    GP> I read the Bible with an open mind, and with all the talk   
      
    Dangerous. That might lead to independent thinking... you know   
    how evil that is.   
      
    GP> of Islam, it got me interested in learning more.  So, I   
    GP> read up on Wikipedia quite a bit, and started reading the   
    GP> Bible again for the first time since I was a child.  I   
    GP> found out through Wikipedia that Islam and the other   
    GP> Christian religions have a common root, and that Muhammad   
    GP> came several hundred years after Christ, and that Islam   
    GP> even considers Christ to be a prophet.   
      
    Not only a prophet, but Muhammed said Jesus was a greater   
    prophet.   
      
    GP> I went on to read many of the requirements of Islam, then   
    GP> went to the Bible.  I keep it in my bathroom and read when   
    GP> I'm on my throne... ;) It looks to me like Islam is simply   
    GP> a more rigorous and spiritual religion, whereas what most   
    GP> of us follow now has simply done away with most of our   
    GP> rituals.   
      
    Uh... not the Catholic Church. Rituals are part and parcel of   
    it.   
      
    Islam is not more rigorous or spiritual. The greatest   
    commonality between the religions is, how many claimed adherents   
    don't pay much attention to the teachings of their religion.   
      
    Much of the practice of Muslims actually is not Islamic, and   
    often is opposed by Islam.   
      
    Christianity and Judaism are just as rigorous and spiritual,   
    when someone actually looks into them. Christians and Jews tend   
    to skate on their faiths as much as Muslims do.   
      
    BTW, if you are interested, watch a program on Canadian TV,   
    Little Mosque on the Prairie. If you can get any Canadian TV. I   
    believe it is also available on BBC TV, if you can get any of   
    that. I get a Canadian station on my cable, but have to pay   
    extra for the BBC.   
      
    GP> I recently received a translated Quran in the mail (you can   
    GP> get one free from freequran.com), so I'm looking forward to   
    GP> reading it directly.   
      
    It's also available from Project Gutenberg.   
      
   BOB KLAHN bob.klahn@sev.org   http://home.toltbbs.com/bobklahn   
      
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