The Politically Incorrect Guide to Islam and the Crusades

TheLure of Islamic Paradise

Bud Paradise would not be a bore for Muslims with different proclivities.
Allah also promis ed his blesse d that in Paradis e, "round about them
willserve, devoted to them, young male servants handsome as pearlswell-
guard ed" (Qur'a n 52:24 ), "yout hs of perpe tual fresh ness" (Qur'a n
56:1 7): "if thou seest them, thou would st thin k them scat tered pear ls"
Qur’an76:19).
Bu t sur el y th e Qur 'an is n't co nd on in g-
homosexuality, is it? After all, it depicts Lot
tellin g the peop le of Sodo m; "Fo r ye
pra cti ceyo ur lu st s on me n in pr ef er en ce
to wome n: ye are inde ed a peopl e
tran sgres sing beyond bounds" (7:81) and "of
all the cr eat ur es in th e wo rld , wil l ye
app ro ac h-ma le s, an d le av e th os e wh om
Al la h ha s created for you to be your
mates? Nay, ye ar e a pe op le
tr an sg re ss in g al l li mi ts !" (2 6: 16 5). A
ha di th co mm an ds th at "i f a man who is
not marr ied issei zed comm itt ingsodomy,
he will be stoned to death."' Another hadith
has Muhammad saying: Kill the one who
sodomizes and the onewho le ts it be don e
to hi m." ' Th ese str ictur es

have worked their way into Islamic legal codes, such that two Saudis were so anxious

to avoid a flogging or pr is on te rm th at th ey mu rd er ed a Pa ki st an i wh o

wi tn es se d th ei r -sha mefu l acts " by runn ing overhim wit h a car, smas hing his

head inwith a rock, and setting him on fire.'

But the pea rl-lik e you th s of Par adi se hav e giv en ris e to a str ang e doub le-

mind edne ss abou t homo sex uali tyinIsla m. The grea t poet Abu Nuwas openly

glorified homosexuality in his notorious poemThePerfumedGarden:

A Book You're Not

Supposed to Read

Islamikaze: Manifestations of Islamic

MartyrologybyRaphaelIsraeli;London: Frank

CassPublishers, 2003, is an exhaustiveand

enthralling treatmentof whatmotivatesIslamic

suicidebombers,

It's all here:the oppressionof women

and non-Muslims,thebrutal punishments,the

doublestandards,and more—laid outclearly and

preciselywithouta trace of self-consciousness

Orembarrassment. It'shair-raising—and

enlightening—reading.