Chapter 1MUH AMM AD: PRO PHE T OF WARWbydoesthelifeofMuhammad,theProphet of Islam, matt e r t o d a y?
F o u r t e e n c e n t u r i e s h a v e p a s s e d s i n c e h e w a s b o r n. M i l l i o n s
o f M u s l i m s ha ve l i v e d a n d d i e d s i n c e t h e n , and manyleaders
have risen tolead the faithfu l, including descenden ts of the Prophe t
him self .Sure ly Isla m, likeoth er rel igions, has change dover1,400years.
Here's why the life ofMuhammadmatters; Contrarytowhatmany sec-
ula ris tswoul d have usbelieve, rel igi onsarenot ent ire lydeter min ed(or
dis tor ted )bythefaith ful ove rtim e.Th e liv esand wor dsof th efou nd er s
remain centr al, no matter how long ago they lived. The idea that
believers shap e reli gion is derived, instead,fromthe fashion able1960 s
philosophy of decon struction ism , whi ch teaches tha t written wor ds
havenomeaningother than thatgiventothem bythereader. Equally
important,Ifollo wstha t if the rea deralo nefin ds mean ing ,the re can
be notru thandcer tai nly no rel igi oustruth): on e pe rson 's me aning
is eq ual to anoth er' s.Ulti matel y,according todeconstructionism, weall
crea teourownsetof"truths," nonebetter or worsethan anyother.
Yetfor the religiousmanor womanonthe streets of Chicago, Rome,
Jerusalem,Damascus, Calcutta, and Bangkok, the words of Jesus,Moses,
Muhammad,Krishna. and Buddha mean something far greater than any
individual'sreading of them.And evento theless-than-devout reader,
Guess what?
* Muhammad did not
teach "peace and
tolerance."
Muhammad led
armies and ordered
assassinations of his
enemies.
Islamictradition
allows for negotiated
settlements only in
s e r v i c eo f [ h e
ultimate goal of
Islamic conquest,