Like everyone else, I was warned about the blood and violence, and braced for it. But the bit about the English subscripts must have slipped my mind. One unexpected thing I got out of watching "The Passion of the Christ" is its affirmation that Jesus never uttered the word "God." Instead, he called upon the Creator using a name that is very close to what I and other Muslims often evoke, namely, the word "Allah." (The Aramaic word for God is transliterated as "alaha.")

In a broad sense, "The Passion," as well as the controversy that stalks it, is an extension of the very long struggle for narrative control over the life and mission of Jesus. We, the American public, are given the impression that the discussion about the movie and its main character is a discourse between folks on both sides of a curious hyphen in the Judeo-Christian ambit, with Rabbis and Jewish intelligentsia expressing their fears that the movie will inspire anti-Semitism and with Christians denying that.

The irony here is that Muslims are perfectly poised to offer a view that no one seems to be talking about. What "The Passion" depicted in chilling imagery is but one narrative among several about Christ. In fact, Gibson portrayed one "canonized" narrative of Christ (only 12 hours of it) that received approval some centuries after the Messiah had lived and one that does not enjoy consensus even in Christian quarters and scholarship.

When asked, a Muslim will tell you that Christ was not sent to die, but, like the prophets before him and Prophet Muhammad after him, he was sent to live and teach. In short, a Muslim would say there is no Christ killer and, therefore, no need to associate anyone with that indictment and no need to cause anyone to fear it. What happened to Jesus at the end of his life was not about violence, but about honor in the face of vehement rejection. God raised His prophet to Himself, thus sparing Jesus of the execution Gibson so graphically detailed and imprinted in the public mind through the very powerful medium of art and culture. This is a view that was also shared among some early Christian sects, like the Basilideans, who believed that Christ himself was never crucified.

To vilify Jesus and deny that he is one of God's prophets and messengers is a cardinal sin in Islam, enough to disqualify one from the faith. To deify Jesus, however, is considered an affront to the primordial foundation of the religion project: the oneness of God and His sole divinity. The Muslim "middle" view here is not a self-conscious act of officiating a religious debate between Jews and Christians. Our understanding and beliefs regarding Christ are essentially identical to the beliefs we have about Noah, Abraham, Moses, and Muhammad: all prophets, all humans, sent by God to teach humanity certain things that should keep us guided and clear in our very brief lives. If we are ever to be confused about something, let it not be about God and His divinity, and humankind and our humanity, especially as it pertains to our salvation quest. In Islamic theology, the human being is born pure, brought into this world in a state of grace. The concept of Original Sin is essentially homeless in our tradition. We inherit eye color and receding hairlines from our parents, not their wrongdoing. Forgiveness, pardoning, and mercy are of God's essence, and He generously bestows them for the cool price of belief and sincerity.

In an important way, "The Passion" is an accidental expose about the religious sensitivities of our times, about a wounded spirituality that seems to require sensationalism to keep the faithful going. This is a point that men and women of religion may all agree upon and observe in their respective flocks. Mel Gibson unwittingly may have done a service in raising issues indigenous to the human spirit that the postmodern world seems to shun, issues about God, prophets, salvation, mercy, and hope. It's a vital conversation with divides and alliances, passions and perils, but a conversation that nonetheless can stand to hear the "middle" view that Islam naturally offers. Something of this view, in unavoidably brief fashion, now follows:

Muslims love and revere Jesus, and believe in him as a Prophet and Messenger of God, a great teacher and guide for people. But Muslims do not believe that Jesus was God or the Son of God. Nor do Muslims believe that he was slain on the cross, as some early sects of Christians had once believed. Jesus was sent to the Children of Israel to revive faith and a spiritual connection with God. All the miracles that Jesus performed were indeed true: raising the dead, healing the blind and the leper, and more. These miracles, however, occurred through the auspices of God's power and will, as it was with the splitting of the sea for Moses, Solomon understanding the utterances of animals, and many other suspensions of the natural order. God is the Creator, and when He determines something, He but says to it "Be" and it is! (as the Qur'an states). Muslims venerate Mary, the mother of Jesus. She indeed gave birth to Jesus though she was a virgin. She was a spiritual woman who was chosen among her people to the office of special contemplation and prayer. But Muslims do not hold her to be the "mother of God" and similar attributes. She too was fully human and was a beloved and important person in a remarkable series of miracles in a special time in human history. Every biology and miracle, the explainable and the inexplicable, whether it is the creation of Adam from clay or the conception of any given child of two parents, goes back to God. It is all the same to Him. All of it easy. All of it His.

In Islamic parlance, Jesus (peace be upon him) is known by the venerable titles of "Word" and "Spirit," since the Qur'an tells us that God cast the "word" or "spirit" upon Mary, the Mother of Jesus. "Indeed, the angels said: 'O Mary! God gives you glad tidings of a word from Him, whose name is the Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary, illustrious in this world and the Hereafter, and he shall be among those brought near [to God]. He will speak to humankind in the cradle and in manhood, and he is of the righteous" (Qur'an, 3:45).

Also, the Qur'an states: "The Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, was but a Messenger of God, and His word which He conveyed to Mary, and a spirit proceeding from Him" (Qur'an, 4:171). "And indeed God gave Moses the Book [Torah], and after him We sent Messengers in succession. We gave Jesus son of Mary clear proofs and strengthened him with the Holy Spirit [Angel Gabriel]" (Qur'an, 2:87).

The thought life of a Muslim with regard to all the prophets is best summed by the following verse of the Qur'an "Say [O believers]: "We believe in God and [the Book] sent down to us, and what was sent down to Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, and the Tribes; and what was given to Moses and Jesus and what was given to [all] the Prophets from their Lord. We make no distinction between any of them, and to Him do we surrender ourselves" (Qur'an 2:136).

Quite wrong on all accounts Mr. Dutra! My comments are right on time. And yes, I do know quite a lot about the so-called Christian religion. Greek this and Greek that all the while the Messiah was not Greek nor spoke Greek! You claim that Jesus is the son of G-d in contradition to the first of the Ten Commandments. You offer us the Word, the Bird and the one that heard the Word and sent the Bird. Three deities - three gods, a father - god, a son - god and a bird - god. As far as history is concerned, tell us about the Maccabean Revolt and what was the name of the idol the pagan Greeks forced the Jews to worship in Jerusalem in the Holy of Holies. Then answer this- What form did the father god take to come to earth to beget/sire his son with a human female? Then who was the son's heavenly mother? You forgot about the goddess, the father-god, the mother-goddess, the son-god and the bird-god. The fighting words are statements that G-d had a son and that he died to save you from the father-god. Now listen, of the three gods you worship, which has the most power? The father-god of course since he drown the people of Noah, killed the people of Lot and killed Pharoh. All this and the loving son-god did not stop the father-god. When we read the bible, we find that there is no Old Testament commands to worship god#2 nor god #3. We call you back to the true faith - belief in one G-d, the creator and sustainer of what you see and can't see. One G-d not 3 in 1 nor father and son. Please answer my questions!

Since Mr. Dutra has been reluctant to answer my questions, I'll move the bar up just a little. History, it has been said is the best teacher. Christians must admit that there was a time in the early church when the followers of the Messiah were not known as nor called Christians. These original followers did not wear crosses nor pray to Jesus. They worshipped in the places of prayer of the Jews, bowing and touching their foreheads on the floor just like an observant Jew. Yet, what they believed was different from what the Jews of their time believed. They submitted their will to Allaha, believed in the resurrection of the dead (being raised to life from dust, flesh and bone, hair and skin complete with their present faculties including the sense of smell and touch) and the final judgement. They followed the dietary laws of Moses, therefore, consuming swine flesh was forbidden. They waited for the prophet fortold by the Messiah - the Praised One. Followers of the Messiah and the Messiah himself were Muslims(one who summits his will to Allah)! I repeat, the Followers of the Messiah and the Messiah himself were Muslims not Christians nor Jews. Go back to the history of the early church in Jerusalem before the conversion of Saul/Paul and the Antioch mission. Remember the term "Christian" or "worshipper of Christ" was a insulting slur used by the Dios worshipping pagans and ignorant persons from Antioch.

Haji Saif: you are mistaken: look at the prophecies I quoted above, from the Old Testament, which foretell that the Christ would be divine (Isaiah 9:6-7), that the Messiah would be God Himself (Micah 5:2). These were not written by Christians, these were prophecies given by the Jewish prophets, and were preserved uncorrupted. The proof of this can be found in the dead sea scrolls, which are over a thousand years older than the previous oldest manuscript of the Old Testament. These scrolls are verifiably ancient, written centuries before Jesus was born. If you choose to disagree, I can understand, but don't spread false allegations. Look at the prophecies themselves; the theology isn't Greek or Roman, it is from the inspired writings given by God Himself.

K0oly Spirit "being a bird," that isn't the case. The scripture says the manifestation of the Holy Spirit was like the form of a dove, not that it was a dove. God may manifest Himself in any form He wishes; He appeared as a burning bush to Moses, and in this case, His Holy Spirit manifested in the likeness of a dove. There's nothing wrong with that. See for yourself:

Matthew 3:13-17
Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. But John tried to deter him, saying, "I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?"
     Jesus replied, "Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness." Then John consented.
     As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending *like* a dove and lighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased."
[The church father Eusebius records that Matthew was originally recorded in Aramaic, and translated to Greek.]

The Holy Spirit is not something the Christians came up with, it is recorded even in the earliest pages of the Bible: (the following are Old Testament quotes)

Genesis 1:1-2
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
     Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.

Psalm 51:10-12
Create in me a pure heart, O God,
and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Do not cast me from your presence
or take your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of your salvation
and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.

Isaiah 63:9-10
In his love and mercy he redeemed them;
he lifted them up and carried them
all the days of old.
Yet they rebelled
and grieved his Holy Spirit.
[[I]The fact that it says 'grieved' indicates that the Holy Spirit is a personal being, and not just a mysterious force.[/I]]
So he turned and became their enemy
and he himself fought against them.

The fact that the Messiah is the Son of God is not something Christians made up. Behold: the Old Testament foretells this. We have this preserved uncorrupted, for even the scrolls that predate Jesus' birth declare this:

Psalm 2 [This was written over a thousand years before Jesus was born.]
Why do the nations conspire
and the peoples plot in vain?
The kings of the earth take their stand
and the rulers gather together
against [I]YHWH[/I]
and against his Anointed One. [[I]or 'Messiah'[/I]]
"Let us break their chains," they say,
"and throw off their fetters."

The One enthroned in heaven laughs;
the Lord scoffs at them.
Then he rebukes them in his anger
and terrifies them in his wrath, saying,
"I have installed my King
on Zion, my holy hill."

I will proclaim the decree of [I]YHWH[/I]:

He said to me, "You are my Son;
today I have become your Father.
Ask of me,
and I will make the nations your inheritance,
the ends of the earth your possession.
You will rule them with an iron scepter;
you will dash them to pieces like pottery."

Therefore, you kings, be wise;
be warned, you rulers of the earth.
Serve [I]YHWH[/I] with fear
and rejoice with trembling.
Kiss the Son, lest he be angry
and you be destroyed in your way,
for his wrath can flare up in a moment.
Blessed are all who take refuge in him.

Sir, you are simply mistaken that "dios" refers to 'Zeus'. 'Dios' is Latin for 'deity', 'Zeus' is a Greek proper name for the Greek pagan deity. They are different languages altogether! Zeus was considered a god to the pagan Greeks, but the fact that Zeus and other pagan deities were each refered to as a 'god' ('theos') doesn't mean that the term denotes nothing but those deities. Consider the fact that 'al-illah' (which is the root for 'allah') was used by the pagan idolaters before Muhammad as a title (not a name, but a title) for their gods (for example, 'Marduk the god'). That doesn't mean that 'al-illah' only designates a pagan deity, don't you agree? Just as in Aramaic, the term 'allaha' means 'the god', and was used to refer to the one God when used alone, but could be a title for a pagan deity such as Ashur (of the Assyrians, whose language was Aramaic), 'dios', which meant 'the deity', when used alone, was clearly understood to mean the one God. If 'dios' can't designate anything but pagan deities, you're following a double standard, because 'al-illah', contracted to 'allah', was also used by pre-Muhammad arab pagans as the title "the god" to refer to their pagan deities.

The reference to Dios is found in Acts of the Apostles, chapter 14: verse 13.
Reference: The Analytical Lexicon to the Greek New Testament, by William D. Mounce, Zondervan Publishing House, page 149,
Dios gen sg masc {Ac 14:13; n-3g(1); 2416] Zeus

Delta, Iota, Omicron, Sigma
Dios according to the bible means of Zeus!

ǃ˙When the crowds saw what Paul had done, they shouted in the lycaonian language, ǃÚThe gods have come down to us in human form!ǃ٠Barnabas they called Zeus, and Paul they called Hermes, because he was the chief speaker.
The priest of Zeus, whose temple was just outside the city...ǃ˘
These misguided persons were ready to make sacrifice to two human beings on the instigation of the priest from the pagan temple of Zeus. The two apostles in their admonition to the Greek view of God, gave all the glory to the Creator, the lord of the heavens and earth.
ǃ˙Friends, why are you doing this? We are mortals just like you, and we bring you good news, that you should turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all that is in them. In past generations he allowed all the nations to follow their own ways; yet he has not left himself without a witness in doing good-giving you rains from heavens and fruitful seasons, and filling you with food and your hearts with joy.ǃ˘
It must be noted here that any reference to man becoming God or God becoming man is not brought up as a point of clarification at a time when this issue of the divine nature of the Messiah should have been taught if that was truly the message of salvation. What we see is that the Living God is the focus and that idolatry as well as the pagan principal of God assuming human form is refuted. God did not become a man so that He would lie nor die!

At this point, let's investigate the belief system of the pagan Greeks. The last great and enduring heathen incursion into the monotheistic religion was that of the heathen Hellens or the pagan Greeks. This cultural, linguistic, as well as religious legacy is with us today. The way we govern, worship, and play in the western world has its foundation based on the pagan Greek traditions. This being the case, it is important that we look in ǃ˙he Bibilosǃ˘-the ǃ˙Greek renderedǃ˘ bible as well as the historical record to get an understanding as to what took place! In the story of St. Barlaam and St. Josaphat written by the 8th century monk, St. John Damascene, we find an interesting account of the pagan Greek religious system and gods.
ǃ˙Now come we to the Greeks that we may see whether they have any understanding concerning God. The Greeks, then, professing themselves to be wise, fell into greater folly than the Chaldeans, alleging the existence of many gods, some male, others female, creators of all passions and sins of every kind. Wherefore the Greeks, 0 king, introduced an absurd, foolish and ungodly fashion of talk, calling them gods that were not, according to their own evil passions; that, having these gods for advocates of their wickedness, they might commit adultery, theft, murder and all manner of iniquity. For if their gods did so, how should they not themselves do the like? Therefore from these practices of error it came to pass that men suffered frequent wars and slaughters and cruel captivities. But if now we choose to pass in review each one of these gods, what a strange sight shalt thou see!
First and foremost they introduce the god whom they call Kronos, and to him they sacrifice their children, to him who had many sons by Rhea, and in a fit of madness ate his own children. And they say that Zeus cut off his privy parts, and cast them into the sea, whence, as fable telleth, was born of Aphrodite. So Zeus bound his own father, and cast him into the Tartarus. Dost thou mark the delusion of lasciviousness that they allege against their gods? is it possible then that one who was prisoner and mutilated should be a god? What folly? What man in his senses could admit it?

Next they introduce Zeus, who, they say, is the king of the gods, and took the shape of animals, that he might defile mortal women. They show him transformed into a bull, for Europa; into gold, for Danea; into a swan, for Leda; into a satyr, for Antiope; and into a thunderbolt, for Semele. Then of these were born many children, Dionysus, Zethus, Amphion, Herakles, Apollo, Artemis, Perseus, Castor, Helen, Polydeukes, Minos, Rhadamanthos, Sarpedon, and the nine daughters whom they call the Muses.
In like manner they introduce the story of Ganymede. And so befell it, O king, that men imitated them in many ways, and became adulterers, and defilers of themselves with mankind, and doers of other monstrous deeds, in imitation of their gods. How then can an adulterer, one that defileth himself by unnatural lust, a slayer of his father be a god?
Ares is represented as a warlike god, emulous, and covetous of sheep and other things. But in the end they say he was taken in adultery with Aphrodite by the child Eros and Hephaestus and was bound by them. How then can the covetous, the warrior, the bondman and adulterer be a god?
Dionysus they show as a god, who leadeth nightly orgies, and teacheth drunkeness, and carrieth off his neighboursǃ٠wives, a madman and an exile, finally slain by the Titans. If then Dionysus was slain and unable to help himself, nay, further was a madman, a drunkard, and vagabond, how could he be a god?

Herakles, too, is represented as drunken and mad, as slaying his own children, then consuming with fire and thus dying. How then could a drunkard and slayer of his own children, burnt to death by fire, be a god?
Apollo they represent as an emulous god, holding bow and quiver, and, at times, harp and flute, and prophesying to men for pay. Soothly he is needy: but one that is needy and emulous, and a minstrel cannot be a god.
Artemis, his sister, they represent as an huntress, with bow and quiver, ranging the mountains alone, with her hounds, in chase of stag or boar. How can such an one, that is an huntress and a ranger with hounds, be a goddess?
Of Aphrodite, adulteress though she be, they say that she is herself a goddess. Once she had for leman Ares, once Anchises, once Adonis, whose death she lamenteth, seeking her lost lover. They say that she even descended into Hades to ransom Adonis from Persephone. Didst thou, 0 king, ever see madness greater than this? They represent this weeping and wailing adulteress as a goddess.
Adonis they show as an hunter god, violently killed by a boar tusk, and unable to help his own distress. How then shall he take thought for mankind, he the adulterer, the hunter who died a violent death?
All such tales, and many like them, and many wicked tales more shameful still, have the Greeks introduced, 0 king, concerning their gods; tales, whereof it is unlawful to speak, or even to have them in remembrance. Hence men, taking occasion from their gods, wrought all lawlessness, lasciviousness and ungodliness, polluting earth and air with horrible deeds.ǃ˘
With this Christian view of the religion of the pagan Greeks of many wicked gods and goddesses, what was the alternative offered to the heathen? The alternative offered was the man-god concept familiar to the pagan Greeks where the father and son was one god. This relationship of the father and the son, of Dios and Dionysus as one god was and is called Jesus Christ. God didn't become a man so that He should lie nor die! Christ was not a Christian!

The belief and worship of a mythical man-god called Dionysus as the "begotten" son of Zeus predates the coming of the "in the flesh" Messiah. Born on the 25th of December, this begotten son of Zeus was taken from the womb of his murdered mother, Semele, who was destroyed by Zeus' thunderbolts and placed in his father's thigh, from where he came to birth. The Christian celebration of Christmas was set on the birthday of Dionysus, not the Messiah son of Mary. In a later myth, Dionysus was killed as a infant and eaten by the Titans. Zeus destroyed them and from their ashes arose mankind, part human, part divine. The infant's heart was rescued and from it the god was reborn. The pagan principle of the man-god was that Dios and Dios nysos are god the father and god the son at the same time. So that when you referred to the son as god, he was all god and all human. And that the father was the same god, just a different aspect but totally divine. This pagan concept of Dios the father and Dios the son were but different aspects of the self same god. As Sir W. M. Ramsay, the highest living authority on Phrygia and all its ways in his time, explained it, "The father and the son are merely complementary forms of the single ultimate form of the divinity as male, or again ǃÚthe character and personality of the god-father and god-son pass into one another in such a way in the divine tale or drama, that no clear line can drawn to separate them.ǃ٠This essential unity, if-as I have supposed-the the former deity was originally named Dios and the latter Dios Nysos. Well might Christianity take root and flourish (we know that it did) among a people, who had already learnt that the Son was in the Father and the Father in the Son." Before the time of the Messiah, the Greeks and the assimilationist Jews believed in the concept of father and son as one god.

Let's examine those practices past and present to see the relationship between the man-god worship of yesteryear and those still practiced today! The religion of Dionysus, origin of which was Macedonia, is related to us by Euripides in his play Bacchae. Bacchus was another name for Dionysus. In the religion, the human being becomes the demon, the sacred animal of the thiasus, the divine herd of the god by spiritual surrender. The man represents a satyr, the woman a maenad, but they feel as if they are real demons in their ecstasy which they have experienced at the festival of their god. The maenads would roam the wilderness in search of game. When they would find an animal they would rip it apart and eat the flesh raw! By eating raw flesh and drinking fresh blood it was said that the spirit of the god would enter the person. More than being touched by a god called the holy spirit, we see that this was a cult based on demon possession. And there are those unfortunate souls today who think by eating ǃ˙Hisǃ˘ flesh and drinking ǃ˙Hisǃ˘ blood you can obtain eternal life. By substituting a man-god for the wild beast, the church goes beyond their pagan predecessors on their road to ruin by claiming this to be a holy act and a way to receive blessings from the ǃ˙Fatherǃ˘! Comprehension of the female ecstasy associated with this demonic cult is essential if we want to understand the sincere emotion which underlies the dithyramb and tragedy. Dramatic art requires the actor to lay aside the personality with which he was endowed by birth and to feel himself as one who has abandoned the limitation of his own personality. He must lose his own identity and become a changed being, a demon, a god, or a hero. There is no better aid in representing somebody else than to take his costume. Thus the chorus singing in honor of the god becomes a satyr chorus. The Greek word tragos means one who dresses up and performs as a follower of Dionysus. Therefore, tragedy is a song in honor of Dionysus. Performances of dithyrambs, tragedies, satyr plays, and comedies, were acts of religion. Therefore they took place at the festivals of Dionysus, four in number celebrated in order from mid-winter to spring.

1. The Rural Dionysia took place in the month of Poseideon, December, and the beginning of January. At this festival the revelries were performed in honor of Dionysus and the phallic chant was recited. Sacrifice and drinking of wine, the gift of the god, also belonged to it.
2. The Lenaea occurred in Gamelion, the marriage month, also called Lenaion, January and beginning of February. The name of the festival comes from Lenai, maenads, and the name of the month from the common ceremonies which took place for engaged women, who were initiated into the dionysiac mysteries in the Lenaion. On the last day of this month, in the night of the dark moon between this and the following month and festival, the marriage was consummated.
3. The Anthesteria took place in Anthesterion, the month of flowers, February to the beginning of March, which corresponds to our spring. This festival consisted of three parts: first, the new wine in the caskets was broached at the Pithoegia; then the newly-wed and all citizens celebrated the feast of jugs, in which they drank the new wine; the last day was the feast of pots.
4. The City Dionysia, celebrated in Elaphebolion, the month of stags, March to the beginning of April, is the principle festival. It was celebrated not only by the city and the ten counties of Attica, but by the members of the Attic federal state and by many strangers, as at this time of the year the sea was navigable.
We can see that the reverence and attachment to this ǃ˙son of godǃ˘ of the pagan Greeks was very strong indeed. Even the use of swine as the sacrificial animal to this pagan deity led to the justification of the consumption of swine flesh by the Greek dominated population. Even today, the consumption of pork is part of the meals in celebration of the Christian holidays of Christmas and Easter. What holiday would not be complete without that Christmas or Easter ham? Rather than feeling a sense of shame in disobeying their own book, the Christian brags about their ǃ˙freedomǃ˘ to eat unclean meat and blame the Messiah for giving them a diet suited for demons.

As the diet replicates the pagan Greek custom, so too the churchǃÙs recognition of their savior and method of blessing follows almost the same pattern of the festivals and specific cult practices of Dionysus!
The way the Messiah holds his hands in the art work painted or carved by Christian artist, revels the "hand sign" of Bacchanalian cult. You find this on the objects of the most sacred nature. The hand sign of two fingers extended with the thumb holding the curled ring and little fingers meant "private parts of a man"! They not only had a phallic chant, they also used this hand sign symbolizing the phallus as well! Today, it is known as the "Latin Benediction" and is used by non other than the Holy See himself, the Pope, as he blesses the faithful. The Messiah is born on the same day as Dionysus in the winter season and lives, dies and is resurrected by the spring season about the time of the Great Dionysia now known as Easter! More to the point, in Europe and in the so-called New World before the time of Lent, a period of fasting and prayer preceding Easter, there is a festival called Carnival or Bacchanal. In New Orleans it is called Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday). It is a time of drunkenness, nudity, and loose sex with all the heathen party time treats. Near the end of the festivities, a King Bacchus is selected (usually an Hollywood actor) to reign till next year. And this is in Louisiana, a state predominatly Roman Catholic and divided in to parishes instead of counties! And where this practice has been institutionalized in the Caribbean, a whole industry has sprung up to bring in the tourists and it is called Bacchanal after the wine god of the Greeks from where the practice originates, Bacchus or Dionysus the son of Zeus! Remember the story of King Midas and the ǃ˙golden touchǃ˘? It was the pagan deity Dionysus that heard his prayer and gave him this ǃ˙giftǃ˘. And it was the same man-god savior that reappeared and ǃ˙savedǃ˘ King Midas from this ǃ˙golden curseǃ˘! God didn't become a man so that He should lie nor die!

As the diet replicates the pagan Greek custom, so too the church's recognition of their savior and method of blessing follows almost the same pattern of the festivals and specific cult practices of Dionysus!
The way the Messiah holds his hands in the art work painted or carved by Christian artist, revels the "hand sign" of Bacchanalian cult. You find this on the objects of the most sacred nature. The hand sign of two fingers extended with the thumb holding the curled ring and little fingers meant "private parts of a man"! They not only had a phallic chant, they also used this hand sign symbolizing the phallus as well! Today, it is known as the "Latin Benediction" and is used by non other than the Holy See himself, the Pope, as he blesses the faithful. The Messiah is born on the same day as Dionysus in the winter season and lives, dies and is resurrected by the spring season about the time of the Great Dionysia now known as Easter! More to the point, in Europe and in the so-called New World before the time of Lent, a period of fasting and prayer preceding Easter, there is a festival called Carnival or Bacchanal. In New Orleans it is called Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday). It is a time of drunkenness, nudity, and loose sex with all the heathen party time treats. Near the end of the festivities, a King Bacchus is selected (usually an Hollywood actor) to reign till next year. And this is in Louisiana, a state predominatly Roman Catholic and divided in to parishes instead of counties! And where this practice has been institutionalized in the Caribbean, a whole industry has sprung up to bring in the tourists and it is called Bacchanal after the wine god of the Greeks from where the practice originates, Bacchus or Dionysus the son of Zeus! Remember the story of King Midas and the golden touch? It was the pagan deity Dionysus that heard his prayer and gave him this gift. And it was the same man-god savior that reappeared and saved King Midas from this golden curse! God didn't become a man so that He should lie nor die!

The idea of the Creator of the universe transforming into a creature and having sexual intercourse to be born as a man was part of the belief system of the pagan Greeks. This process of begetting offspring by cohabitating with human females is related to us by the Greek myths and the traditions of the man-god cult. Let' s focus on two of these bestial unions and how they relate to the "divine rape" story told concerning the mother of the Messiah. Europa, was the daughter of Agenor, the Phoenician king of Tyre, and sister of Cadmus, the legendary founder of Thebes. One morning, when Europa was gathering flowers by the seashore, the god Zeus saw her and fell in love with her. Transforming himself into a beautiful bull, he appeared before her and enticed her to climb onto his back. He then sped away with her across the ocean to the island of Crete (Kr??ti). There he ravaged her as a bull or in another version of the myth he transformed himself into an eagle to "beget" children. Among the sons she bore him were Minos and Rhadamanthus, both of whom became judges of the dead. The abduction and rape of Europa has been the subject of paintings by many European artists. Leda, was the wife of Tyndareus (king of Sparta) mother of Castor and Polydeuces, Clytemnestra of Troy. She was Zeus' consort when he transformed himself into a bird, a swan. She laid eggs. From them were hatched Polydeuces (also known as Pollux) and Helen, who were immortal children of Zeus, and Castor and Clytemnestra, who were mortal children of Tyndareus). The belief of the pagan Greeks in the concept of their gods who were "begotten" and not made has been assigned to the Messiah. The Incarnation had to start an impregnation and the passing of sperm from the male sex into the female sex. These multiple "incarnations" would mean that each and every spermazoa from the male god had to be a microscopic god in it's own right and as such thousands of these sperm-gods would have to die after the successful fertilization of the human female's egg.

The question that any rational person would ask is, "What form or creature did the god called the Holy Spirit take to have sex or begat the son of god?" The bible insinuates this idea then leaves the reader to his or her own imagination to fill in the details. And if in the culture, beliefs and the unchallenged myths current among the pagan Greeks at the time that their father god took on an animal form to come here as a human being, it is this monsterous idea that lurks in the minds of the misinformed. Even today, there are Christians that the Holy Spirit had sex with Mary, the mother of the Messiah. The incarnation of the Holy Spirit then needs to be reviewed to see what form it took to come here in a "bodily form". The reference is in the bible itself, not the usual one cleverly used (Matthew) but Luke chapter 4, verse 21. The exact wording used here is "in bodily form as a dove". This verse has God "incarnating" as a animal, in this case a bird. This is where Greek paganism shows up once again in the bible. And from this misinformation we get the Holy Spirit represented as a white dove by Christian artists. This more than just a symbol as many Christians would have you believe as we see the "bird-god" represented with a "glow" to indicate that this is no ordinary dove. The physical representation of the third person of the mythtical trinity is not hidden in a secret vault in the Vatican but proudly display there for all the world to see!

The annunciation as reported to us in the bible informs us of the event in question. The reference starts with the annunciation of John the Baptist to a barren old woman, Elizabeth. Notice, the scripture tells us that the angel informs the man that his wife will get pregnant. When questioned, the father, Zachary is struck dumb by the angel Gabriel. Then after days of service was completed and he went to his home, it was days later that Elizabeth conceived and was full of the Holy Spirit. The case of Mary is completely different. The angel does not first inform her betrothed husband to be, Joseph that he will soon be a father without the benefit of marriage nor the pleasure of a honeymoon nor the right of fatherhood itself. Rather the virgin is informed that she will get pregnant and with a son at that. How could she get pregnant without a husband, without having sex, without the agency of sperm? And the angel tells her that her elderly relative, the formerly barren Elizabeth is already six months pregnant with a male child. Keep in mind that male offspring are highly prized in any community and is considered a blessing to have sons over daughters. This idea is wrong as girls are a blessing on their own and are generally the ones that pass on the fathers traits to the next generation not the sons who pass on the mother's family traits. Mary accepts the honor yet remained a virgin. No sex took place at the announcement of the future pregnancy. The pagan Greek notion, that more took place than that is blasphemous, monstrous as well as an outrageous lie! The pagan Greeks believed that the human female did not contribute anything to the process but a womb for the "seed" of man to grow. They assumed that the elements to create the child was in the semen of the man and that the woman was not that important to the process. Please refer to the myth of Zeus and the birth of his begotten son Dionysus who was born from the thigh of Zeus.

Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,) who had no electron microscope, ultrasound detector, nor means to examine DNA structures recited the verses of the Quran from the Almighty Allah by the agency of the Angel Gabriel that gave humanity a new outlook on the formation of the human fetus. This revolutionary concept of the human female possessing not only a womb but also the egg or ovum and that the male only fertilized that egg by the will and grace of Allah shows that the Quran is not just ǃ˙another bibleǃ˘! The Quranic understanding which predated and is agreed to by the current scientific discoveries in embryology informs us that the process of an ǃ˙immaculate conceptionǃ˘ is no more than the ǃ˙messageǃ˘ which is encoded by the DNA in the sperm cellǃÙs head and just that message without the sperm is what caused the egg in MaryǃÙs womb to start dividing and those cells to multiply! So according to Al Islam, the egg in MariumǃÙs womb started growing by a ǃ˙wordǃ˘ from the Almighty - BE and the Messiah Isa was created by his Lord and Cherisher! With her hymen and honor intact, by the power of the Almighty Allah, the egg in her womb begins the process of dividing and multiplying without the agency of sperm! Marium was a virgin when the Holy Spirit or Angel Gabriel entered her room and she was still a virgin when the Holy Spirit or Angel Gabriel left because No Sexual Act Took Place! When Christians bible thumpers preach the ǃ˙only begotten son of god, begotten not Madeǃ˘, it is blasphemy and a contradiction as to the virginity of Mary and the paternity of the Messiah! These are the same individuals that claim that Islam will take humanity back to the middle ages, when what they preach and want humanity to believe takes us back to the ignorance of distant ages before Christ!
Why then do the Christian artist tend to show the Holy Spirit as a white dove in the room with Mary at this time? God didn't become a man so that He should lie nor die. Christ was not a Christian!

Since you Christians avoided answering any of the questions I posted earlier and went on to talk abour Allah(swt) and the pagan Arabs, you should know that there were pre-Muhammad believing Arabs. The al- illah was, is and always will be Allah(swt)! The specific name for the Creator of the Universe revealed to the prophet Muhammad from the Creator of the Universe in Arabic was Allah! Now who revealed the name Dios or Zeus? Why it is a made-up name from the Greek heathens. The specific male deity with a specific storyline not the generic term (Theos) for any male god. Since you rely so much on the greek rendered bible, let's start with the Jews who wrote the Old Testament and see if the pagan Greeks had any influence on their scripture and religious beliefs.