Thread: Positives of Islam?

Has Islam given the Western world anything other than terrorism and immigrants? I'm not trying to be mean, but it's a question that's really been on my mind lately as I read about things like Iran wanting to develop nukes.

If anyone can enlighten me, I'd love to hear about any positive influence that Islam has spread, especially in North America.

If I receive nothing but silence, then I can only assume that there simply aren't any positives. What a shame that the one true God can't shed his everlasting mercy over the entire world.

I don't know that the contributions of a people should be used as fodder for judgement. Many civilizations throughout history and around the world have made contributions to how we live and carry on our everyday lives. It seems that perhaps you should carefully study your thoughts before you convert them to statements. To simply stamp Islam as terrorists and immigrants is, in my opinion, a sharply narrow point of view. Let us not forget that at one point in time during the colonization of the United States, the European settlers who first arrived were immigrants who committed violent acts of terrorism against the native people of this land.

That being said, perhaps you will find this insightful.

Article - Islamic Contributions

Here are excerpts

Algebra - The science of algebra owes much to gifted mathematicians of the Islamic era.
Paper - The introduction of paper into the Moslem and European world was made possible when Arab conquerors overran Asia and Africa in the eighth century.
Gunpowder - The Arabs also learned from the Chinese how to make gunpowder, but they put it to a use the Chinese had never conceived of. They experimented with the idea that the ex-plosive power of gunpowder could be utilized to project a missile from an enclosed chamber.
Textiles - The Crusaders brought back glowing accounts of the rich fabrics of the East. Soon these fabrics became a part of the regular trade building up between the port cities of Italy and the cities of the Near East.
Agricultural Products - The Crusaders were naturally envious of the rich and delicate tables set by the Saracens; rice prepared in many ways and served with lamb or chicken; lentils and other vegetables cooked appetizingly in olive oil; and delicious sweetmeats or fruits unknown to Europe.
The Rise of the University - The Moslems, as we have seen, began to found universities in the ninth century, first in Baghdad and soon in Cairo, Fez, Cordova and other Moslem cities. The el-Azhar University of Cairo boasts of being the oldest existing university in the world.
Machinery - They made translations of Hero's Mechanics and applied its principles to two important inventions, the water-mill and the windmill.

In more modern times...

Modern Islamic contributions to science - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

1) In the 20th century, Salimuzzaman Siddiqui was a leading Pakistani scientist in natural products chemistry. He is the pioneer in extracting chemical compounds from the Neem and Rauwolfia, and is also known for isolating novel chemical compunds from various other flora in the Indian subcontinent. As the director of H.E.J. Research Institute of Chemistry, he carried out extensive research with a team of scientists on pharmacology of various plants to extract a number of chemical substances of medicinal importance.

2) In 1991, Saudi medical researchers discovered "neuro-Behcet's disease",[4] a neurological involvement in Behcet's disease.

3) Iranian scientist Samuel Rahbar was a pioneer in hematology and the understanding of diabetes. In 1969, he discovered glycosylated hemoglobin...

4) Iranian physician and engineer Toffy Musivand invented a variety of medical technology, including the artificial cardiac pump as treatment for heart failure...

5) Dr. Muhammad B. Yunus is a Muslim American physician who practices internal medicine and rheumatology.[8] In 1981, he published the "first controlled study of the clinical characteristics" of the fibromyalgia syndrome, for which he is regarded as "the father of our modern view of fibromyalgia.

6) In 2007, Malaysian scientist Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor, who is both an astronaut and orthopedic surgeon, became the first to perform biomedical research in outer space.

So without Islam we wouldn't have had the Twin Towers?

It hasn't been proven that Twin Towers was something endorsed or supported by ordinary Muslims or Islam in particular. Even FBI records have debunked the notion about the 911 suspects. Twin Towers was something "political" and should be seen in that context only. If you've any personal example or event that suggests immigrants are responsible of any mess, then feel free to share. I think media has played an aggressive and active role in portraying Muslims as the culprits, only because the names of the suspects started with "Abu" or "Bin" or what ever nomenclature...

Merilyn, while I don't always agree with what you say, I do appreciate you presenting your arguments in a fair and reasonable fashion. It's this kind of calm discourse that truly makes the U.S. a great place.